The California Supreme Court says a couple who helped a sheriff’s employee by checking on their rural neighbor only to be attacked by a killer wielding a hunting knife aren’t entitled to damages.
The justices decided Thursday in favor of the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office.
Jim and Norma Gund sued for $10 million after the sheriff’s office said they were only entitled to workers’ compensation when they were hurt doing the favor for a sheriff’s employee in a remote town.
In March, 2011, during a snowstorm, Cpl. Ron Whitman of the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office called the couple and asked them to check in on their Kettenpom neighbor, Kristine Constantino, who had dialed 911 and hung up, the Sacramento Bee reported.
What he failed to tell them, the couple alleged, is that Constantino had whispered “Help … help …” before hanging up. He told them the call was likely related to the stormy weather.
When the Gunds arrived at their neighbor’s home, they were confronted by a strange man and found Constantino and her boyfriend dead and wrapped in plastic on the floor, the Bee reports.
The couple each had their throats slashed and almost died.