Mississippi Court Upholds Judgment Against County Due to Insurer Default

A $250,000 default judgment against Tippah County has been upheld by the Mississippi Supreme Court.

The case was filed in 2007 by Daniel Childers of Ripley, who contended that his elbow was broken during an arrest by county deputies in 2006.

Officials told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo that the default judgment was granted by a judge because the county never responded to the lawsuit.

The judge found that the county properly delivered the lawsuit to its insurance agent, but that that the lawsuit was never forwarded to the county’s liability insurance carrier.

Officials say the insurance carrier has acknowledged its mistake and the county is now in discussions concerning who is responsible for paying the judgment.

Topics Carriers Mississippi