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Justice Denied When Adult Children Die

By William S. Bailey

In the early 1980's, after a semi-retired senior partner in my first firm lost his 55-year-old son to a sudden, massive heart attack, he told me, “You never want to bury your children, no matter how old they are.” Even though my own children were preschool age at the time, I understood exactly what he meant. Then, as now, the worst thing I can possibly imagine for any parent at any age is the loss of a child.

Anecdotal evidence and scientific research both demonstrate the severe mental suffering of parents who lose adult children. When popular entertainer Dean Martin's beloved son Dino died in the crash of an air national guard jet in California , those closest to Martin observed that he became a haunted presence, seemingly losing the will to live. This is consistent with all the clinical research, which reports profound disturbances of day-to-day functioning in such parents. One of the leading scientists in this area, Dr. Shirley Murphy concludes:

It is difficult to imagine experiencing trouble remembering things, one's mind going blank, no interest in things, feeling hopeless about the future, and wanting to smash things for an extended period of time as reported [by these parents].

In the summer of 2002, I began a trial in which my passion as a father joined with my passion for justice as a trial lawyer. I represented George and Kathryn Philippides in a wrongful death case for the loss of their intelligent, handsome and charismatic 22-year-old son Yianni. I had taken case knowing that the law in my state was believed by many to foreclose legal action by non-dependent parents in the death of an adult child.

The love and sacrifices George and Kathryn had made for Yianni and their two older children, as well as the kindness and respect they showed to all people, justified giving this case everything I had in me. Beyond this, I felt a special admiration for Yianni, whose short life epitomized such great potential, with not only academic achievement, but a love of people and an earnest search for wisdom.

Knowing that much would be expected of him once he began a career, Yianni had taken some time off after college, supporting himself as a bicycle messenger in Seattle . On the afternoon of June 22, 2001 , he was run down on his bicycle in a marked crosswalk in the late afternoon by a rented SUV driven by traveling salesman Robert Bernard.

Yianni was rushed to the regional trauma center, unconscious, with a severe head injury. Summoned as a family contact, his older sister Zoe later made telephone contact with their parents, who were on vacation in Alaska . They drove for ten straight hours to Anchorage , rushed home to Seattle and were in constant attendance at their son's bedside thereafter.