By Dean Kahn
of the Herald staff

A jury took only 1 1/2 hours Thursday evening to let the city of Bellingham off the hook in a high-stakes lawsuit over a 1981 car crash that killed a driver and left his passenger son a quadriplegic.

By a vote of 11 to 1, the jurors decided the city does not share any of the blame for the crash in which the intoxicated driver lost control of his station wagon and smashed into a large maple tree located 12 1/2 feet off Eldridge Avenue in the city right-of-way.

City officials were worried a verdict for the plaintiff could have necessitated expensive projects to make local roads "drunk-proof."

Bellingham attorney, Dean Brett, who was hired to defend the city, said he had been confident about the city’s case, a feeling bolstered by his participating earlier in three practice trials conducted by his office in which mock juries also favored the city.

"When you’re being sued for $6 million, you take all precautions," he said.

The wheelchair-bound plaintiff, 26-year-old William Everson, said he was surprised by the verdict.

"I honestly do feel that (tree) is a threat to the, quote, normal driver, unquote," he said. "If that tree gets taken out, then all this was worthwhile. If not, then I guess I’ve wasted my time."

Brett declined to say whether, if asked by city officials, he would recommend the tree be removed.

Everson’s attorney, Jeff Grant of Seattle, was not present when the verdict was announced. The trial before Superior Court Judge Marshall Forrest began eight days ago.

Attorneys agreed that Gary Everson, a Bellingham resident, was intoxicated the night of the crash June 28, 1981. He had a blood-alcohol level of 0.22 several hours after the crash, more than twice the legal intoxication level for drivers.

The blood-alcohol test was not performed on William Everson after the crash.

Bellingham police estimated Gary Everson was driving nearly 70 miles per hour when he went out of control on the "S" curve where Marine Drive meets Eldridge. His car clipped a guardrail, knocked over a sign and severed a utility pole before striking the scarred maple tree.

During his final arguments to the jury Thursday afternoon, Grant said evidence about Gary Everson’s drinking and speeding was irrelevant to the legal issue of whether the tree was too close to the road.

He contended the tree was improperly within a 10-foot to 15-foot roadside "zone of safety" recommended by road-design standards.

Brett replied the city isn’t obliged to protect the safety of reckless, drunken drivers. The city only has to ensure roads are "reasonably safe" for people who drive properly and safely, he said.

Brett blamed the crash on Gary Everson’s alcohol and speed," and said William Everson also was at fault because he greed to ride with his intoxicated father.

"You can’t change roads just for the intoxicated drivers," Brett said. "We can’t stop all accidents."

Grant also contended city engineers should have known the tree was a hazard because Eldridge has had a high rate of accidents – 80 of them from 1977 through 1979 – and because the tree has been involved in other accidents, including another fatality.

Brett countered that only 12 of the 80 accidents were near the "S" curve. When accidents there increased after the nearby Cocoanut Grove tavern opened in 1979, the city contacted the tavern’s owner and warned him to no over-serve alcohol to customers, he said.

The city also repaved and widened the curve, and installed other safety signs and markings.

"We didn’t sit still," Brett said. "We took action."

When asked later if the verdict was a message to city officials, he said, "The message, if anything, is they’re doing a pretty good job."