Checks totaling $1.3 million were presented Friday to seven plaintiffs with lawsuits against the American Samoa Government which were settled out of court.
The settlement payments are covered with proceeds of the Series B bonds which were sold by the American Samoa Economic Development Authority last week.
The check presentation took place in the Governor’s Office conference room Friday morning with Governor Lolo Moliga, the Senate President and House Speaker present.
Attorney General Talauega Eleasalo Ale announced the names of the plaintiffs.
The only media informed of the ceremony and covered it was the government TV station.
At our request, the AG provided us a list of the cases which were settled out of court and the amounts of the checks presented Friday.
The largest check of $475,000 was payment in the case of Filoialii vs ASG.
This was a wrongful death suit brought by survivors of a 12 year-old patient who went into a coma and died at the LBJ Hospital after being admitted for seizures.
The case was settled for half a million dollars and ASG made a payment of $25,000 last December leaving a balance of $475,000.
$346,725 was paid to ANZ Bank as a settlement for property formerly leased by ASG to Pacific Products and invoices owed by ASG to Pacific Products.
ANZ foreclosed on its loan to the now defunct company with the loan secured by the leasehold interest among other things.
ASG needed the Pacific Products lot to build a gymnasium for Nu’uuli Polytech.
The total settlement was for $370,000 and a payment of $30,473 was made last year leaving a balance of $345,000 plus interest of $1,725.
The agreement calls for an annual interest rate of 6% which started accruing October 1st last year.
The planned gym for Nu’uuli Vo Tech is still on the drawing board.
ASG also paid out $300,000 to plaintiffs who filed suits for losses and injuries from the Fagatogo landslides in 2004.
The lawsuits sought $17.6 million total with plaintiffs claiming that ASG failed to properly control development on top of the Fagatogo hillside which caused the landslide after heavy rains.
All four cases have been settled for $300,000.
The plaintiffs who received $100,000 each are Tavake, Jordan and Kilde Sales/Langkilde.
Amio Talauega vs ASG/LBJ Hospital alleged medical malpractice and wrongful death stemming from mismanagement of the pregnancy and death of a premature new born.
ASG is paying the plaintiff $230,000.
The smallest payment was $40,000 in the case of Alailima vs ASG.
Former Director of Homeland Security Leiataua Birdsall Alailima was stopped at the airport while he was about to depart on Hawaiian Air on orders of then Director of Homeland Security Tuala Mike Sala.
Leiataua sued for $2.5 million and the Trial Court awarded damages of $45,000 to Leiataua.
All parties appealed and the case was eventually settled for $40,000.
Attorney General Talauega said ASG also paid off the remainder of the Progressive Insurance vs ASG court award for the Laufou fire of $4.5 million last August with proceeds of the Series A bond.
