City attorneys agreed to pay $7 million to a boy who was partially paralyzed after a police chase led to a crash and an alleged cover-up in Makaha in September 2021.
In all, the Sept. 12, 2021, police chase of a car leaving an early morning beach park party has cost taxpayers at least $24 million. The incident is one of the costliest civil matters in Honolulu history.
The $7 million settlement is pending approval by the Honolulu City Council.
The settlement was accepted Thursday by attorney Eric Seitz in Oahu Circuit Court. Seitz represents the family of Dayton Gouveia, who was 14 years old at the time of the crash. The settlement offer came after at least two mediation sessions and one settlement conference were unsuccessful.
Seitz told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in an interview that his team plans to pursue “additional contributions” of money from the driver of the car, Jonaven Perkins-Sinapati, who got $12.5 million; and the owner of the car, Perkins-Sinapati’s then-girlfriend.
Four other passengers who sustained injuries in the early morning crash recently settled with the city for $4.5 million. Those passengers were 17, 18, 20 and 21 years old at the time of the crash.
“I’m very unhappy with the way the matter was handled by city lawyers,” said Seitz.
Ian Scheuring, deputy communications director for Mayor Rick Blangiardi, told the Star-Advertiser in a statement that the “parties, with the assistance of the court and a mediator, participated in settlement discussions over the course of several weeks.”
“The parties have reached a tentative settlement agreement that will be subject to City Council approval,” wrote Scheuring. “The City declines to comment further on the settlement agreement until the members of the Honolulu City Council have had the opportunity to consider the offer.”