Suit Against Priest Over Injuries in Car Accident Settles for $8.75M

An Ocean County judge on March 26 approved $8 million in settlements on behalf of a minor and a mentally incapacitated man who were part of a group of pedestrians struck by a car, bringing total recoveries to $8.75 million.

Carmelena Mancini, then 7 years old, was left brain-damaged and blind by the accident on May 14, 2005, and her uncle, James Craven, broke his legs and injured a nerve in his left leg, resulting in a permanent drop foot, says plaintiffs’ lawyer Michael Breslin, of Hackensack’s Breslin & Breslin.

The child, who is in need of 24-hour care, will recover $7.8 million. Her mother and guardian ad litem, Joanne Mancini, receives $200,000 for loss of her daughter’s services. Craven gets $600,000.

Carmelena’s father, Vincent Mancini, accepted $150,000 for a broken left tibia, a torn knee ligament and a lingering limp, says his lawyer, Point Pleasant solo Cornelius Daniel III.

The accident occurred on Fischer Boulevard at Hazelwood Road in Toms River Township at about 9 p.m. The car’s driver was Chrispin Obico, a priest at St. Justin’s Roman Catholic Church in Toms River Township. The plaintiffs alleged Obico did not have his headlights on, which he denied, and that he was supposed to wear corrective lenses while driving, which he admitted he did not.

The suit named Obico, St. Justin’s and the Diocese of Trenton. The defendants cross-claimed against Vincent Mancini, claiming that as the only capable adult present, he was at fault for crossing the busy, four-lane road in the dark where there was no crosswalk or lighting. His carrier is paying $150,000 of Craven’s settlement to resolve the counterclaim.

The settlement was reached at a Jan. 2 conference with Superior Court Judge James Courtney and approved, as to Carmelena and Craven, by Superior Court Judge Marquis Jones Jr. at a March 26 friendly hearing.