$125 Million Lawsuit Filed Against The Weather Channel by Mother of Motorist Killed

LUBBOCK, Texas - March 26, 2019 - PRLog -- The mother of deceased motorist Corbin Lee Jaeger, who was 25 when he was killed, filed a wrongful death lawsuit on March 26, 2019, in Federal District Court in Lubbock, Texas. The lawsuit seeks $125 million in damages from The Weather Channel (TWC), which employed the two storm chasers who allegedly caused a deadly two-car crash just west of Spur, Texas, southeast of Lubbock.

According to the lawsuit, TWC's on air personalities Kelley Williamson and Randall Yarnall habitually ran stop signs, traffic lights and violated other basic traffic safety laws, in attempts to obtain video footage for their show, TWC's "Storm Wranglers," and for TWC's weather programming. The lawsuit also alleges that TWC was aware of their dangerous, reckless driving habits.

The lawsuit states the incident occurred on March 28, 2017, while Williamson and Yarnall were chasing a tornado at 70 miles per hour during a rainstorm. The two were traveling northbound on Dickens County Road 419, to film a tornado for TWC and ran a stop sign at the intersection with County Road 419. According to San Diego attorney Robert A. Ball, who represents Jaeger's mother, "The Chevrolet Suburban driven by Yarnall was live streaming for TWC when it ran into the path of the Jeep Patriot Jaeger was driving. The force of the collision caused the equipment-laden Suburban to catapult over a five-foot-tall fence 150 feet from the point of impact. Jaeger, a certified storm spotter for the National Weather Service, who had planned to return to college in Arizona to pursue a career as a meteorologist, was driving westward away from that tornado, when he was struck and killed."

"The Suburban, which was so filled with storm chasing equipment driver visibility was impaired, was being operated on behalf of TWC as a mobile broadcasting studio to film severe weather and to collect film footage for "Storm Wranglers Season 2," Ball said. "Yarnall and Williamson were streaming live footage to Williamson's Facebook account and YouTube channel, as well as TWC's Facebook account, and talking to a TWC employee via cell phone at the time the collision occurred."

According to the lawsuit, TWC was made aware of multiple traffic violations before the collision by Yarnall and Williamson and was warned by other storm chasers that TWC should pull their stars off the road before they killed themselves or someone else.

According to Ball, TWC "transformed Williamson and Yarnall – who were not trained as meteorologists – into television celebrities although they broke multiple laws, including driving on the wrong side of roadways. Upon our review of several hundred live stream videos posted by Williamson, we determined it was just as likely Williamson and Yarnall would drive through a stop sign or traffic light rather than stop at one."

The lawsuit also alleges TWC promoted Williamson's and Yarnall's "Storm Wranglers" as a dangerous enterprise purposely to mirror the excitement of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) cage fighting, during which the participants could be killed or injured. Additionally, the lawsuit states the storyboard chosen by TWC intended to portray Williams and Yarnall as "heroes."

Storm chasers are used to track and monitor severe weather storms in attempts to provide early warning so residents can evacuate or take shelter. "They take pride in filming and reporting the story to protect area residents," Ball said. "Unfortunately, Williamson and Yarnall, who were chicken farmers and cattle ranchers by trade, became the story, taking the life of Corbin Jaeger with them."

About The Law Offices of Robert A. Ball

The Law Offices of Robert A. Ball is an AV-rated San Diego-based law firm that has specialized in high stakes and complex tort litigation for over 40 years, representing families who have lost loved ones and individuals who have sustained catastrophic injuries, including paralysis, brain injury and amputation in commercial and private aircraft crashes, truck, automobile and watercraft accidents and in multi-district medical device litigation. One hundred percent of the cases handled by the firm are handled by referral. The firm does not maintain a website to advertise its services. The Law Offices of Robert A. Ball is located at 225 Broadway, Suite 2220, San Diego, California 92101; 619-234-3913; rball@robertballapc.com.