Legislature funds settlement over fatal Nanakuli car crash

<p><chron>May 07</chron>--The state is paying <money>$900,000</money> to settle a lawsuit filed by the parents of a 3-year-old boy who died when a pickup truck crossed <location>Farrington Highway</location> in <location value="LU/us.hi.nanuli" idsrc="xmltag.org">Nanakuli</location> and crashed into their vehicle.</p><p>The state <org>Attorney General's Office</org> informed lawmakers of the settlement <chron>April 23</chron>. Lawmakers approved the money Tuesday.</p><p>Koa Paka Kamaki Miles was riding in the back seat of a sedan driven by his father, <person>Samuel D.K. Miles Jr</person>., on <chron>May 15, 2008</chron>, when a pickup truck traveling in the opposite direction smashed into the side of the Mileses' car. The impact caused the sedan to crash into a vehicle parked on the side of the highway.</p><p><person>Samuel Miles</person> said his son was strapped into a belted child safety seat behind him. He said the collision with the pickup ripped off the driver's-side doors of his car and threw <person>Koa Paka's</person> safety seat onto the pavement. The boy was found under the overturned car seat. He died at the scene.</p><p><person>Erica Miles</person>, <person>Koa Paka's</person> mother, was in the back seat to her son's right. To her right was her 1-year-old daughter, Kaohulani, also in a child safety seat. Family friend <person>Johnnett Steverson</person> was in the front passenger seat. Steverson and Samuel, Erica and Kaohulani Miles suffered minor injuries.</p><p>Witnesses told police the speeding eastbound pickup truck clipped the back of a vehicle the driver was attempting to pass, then hit the makai guardrail. The truck bounced back onto the roadway, crossed into oncoming traffic and into the side of the Mileses' vehicle, which was in the outermost westbound lane.</p><p>The truck then hit a tree and hollow-tile wall and flipped over, landing upside down on a parked car.</p><p>The pickup driver, 25-year-old <person>Sanford Valdez</person>, was thrown from his vehicle and died at the scene of head injuries. The <location value="LU/us.hi.honolu" idsrc="xmltag.org">Honolulu</location> medical examiner said his blood alcohol content was 0.169 percent, more than twice the legal threshold for drunken driving.</p><p>Valdez's passenger, <person>Hazel Funtanilla</person>, was trapped in the overturned truck and suffered minor injuries.</p><p>Steverson joined <person>Koa Paka Miles'</person> estate, <person>Samuel and Erica Miles</person> in the lawsuit against the state and will share the settlement.</p><p>Valdez's estate had earlier agreed to split the maximum <money>$40,000</money> personal injury coverage from Valdez's automobile insurance carrier between <person>Koa Paka Miles'</person> estate, the boy's parents, Steverson and Funtanilla.</p><p><person>Koa Paka Miles'</person> sister Kaohulani was not part of either settlement because although she did incur medical expenses from her injuries, they were below the <money>$5,000</money> threshold for filing a lawsuit.</p><p>In 2005, the state <org>Department of Transportation</org> installed movable ZipperLane-type barriers on portions of <location>Farrington Highway</location> to separate opposing lanes of traffic.</p><p>The 2008 crash that killed <person>Koa Paka</person> happened near an <location>Akowai Road</location> entrance to the highway where there are no barriers.</p><p>The <org>Attorney General's Office</org> told lawmakers that due to the facts of the case, there is a high risk that a judge would conclude that the state was negligent.</p><p class="shirttail">___</p><p class="shirttail">(c)2015 The Honolulu Star-Advertiser</p><p class="shirttail">Visit The Honolulu Star-Advertiser at www.staradvertiser.com</p><p class="shirttail">Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.</p>