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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
 Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:15:50 PM
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OMG
Attorney O'Quinn killed in car wreck
By DALE LEZON HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Oct. 29, 2009, 11:56AM
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6692411.html
Prominent Houston attorney John O'Quinn was one of two men who died this morning when their SUV slammed into a large tree on Allen Parkway after the driver apparently lost control, police said.
"I'm stunned. The community lost one of its biggest assets," said Rick Laminack, who worked with O'Quinn from 1987 until 2006. "He was a great lawyer who shared a lot of his wealth with people who needed help."
It wasn't immediately clear whether O'Quinn or the other, still-unidentified victim was driving.
Around 8 a.m., the driver of a black Suburban heading west in the 2000 block of the parkway just west of downtown Houston skidded across the median, oncoming lanes and another median before the vehicle slammed into a tree, which was uprooted, said Houston police Lt. L.J. Satterwhite.
O'Quinn and the other victim were dead at the scene inside the mangled SUV, which ended up along the service road that runs along the south side of Allen Parkway. Workers had to chop down and remove the tree before towing off the Suburban.
Satterwhite said investigators are looking at possible causes, including excessive speed and rain-slicked pavement.
O'Quinn, who made his fortune largely in personal injury cases, most notably in successful breast implant cases in the early 1990s, was a local philantrhopist. He gave money to the Harris County Children's Assessment Center, the Houston Council on Alcohol and Drugs and various Texas Medical Center institutions including St. Luke's Hospital, which has a tower bearing his name..
The football field at the University of Houston's Robertson Stadium also is named for O'Quinn, a big UH supporter.
"Big man, big loss," Laminack said.
He also was a prolific giver to Democratic Party candidates. In the 2006 governor's race, he was the single biggest donor to Democratic nominee Chris Bell's unsuccessful campaign to unseat Republican Gov. Rick Perry. O'Quinn gave Bell $2.5 million.
O'Quinn gave more than $200,000 to Democratic candidates last year, and he donated $4,800 to Houston Mayor Bill White's U.S. Senate campaign.
_____________________
God bless his soul.
JMO
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:18:12 PM
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http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/091029_john_oquinn_killed_wreck
High-Profile Attorney John O'Quinn Killed in Car Wreck
Crash Happened Thursday on Allen Parkway
Updated: Thursday, 29 Oct 2009, 12:11 PM CDT
Published : Thursday, 29 Oct 2009, 11:34 AM CDT
DOUG DELONY
HOUSTON - FOX 26 News has learned high-profile attorney John O'Quinn was killed Thursday morning in an accident on Allen Parkway.
Another person was killed in the wreck as well, in which O'Quinn was a passenger.
Witnesses of the crash say the SUV O'Quinn was riding in slammed into a large tree next to the parkway's westbound lanes. While roads were slick due to overnight rains, the cause of the crash was not immediately known.
Representatives for O'Quinn will hold an afternoon press conference at his law firm.
O'Quinn, 68, was a trial lawyer made famous for multi-million and multi-billion dollar cases against a breast implant manufacturer and the tobacco industry. A 2006 report in Forbes estimates the lawyer won more than $1.5 billion for his firm.
He was also known for his $100 million car collection of over 600 vehicles, included John F. Kennedy's 1962 bubble top limousine and a Batmobile used in the making of a Batman film.
_______________________
My condolences to his family and friends.
JMO
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:20:31 PM
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http://www.39online.com/news/local/kiah-attorney-killed-in-car-accident-story,0,6857638.story
BREAKING NEWS: Prominent Attorney Killed in Car Crash
KIAH Staff Report KIAH
October 29, 2009
HOUSTON - 39 News has learned that prominent Houston attorney John O'Quinn has been killed in a car crash.
O'Quinn and another person were killed Thursday morning when their black Surburban crashed on Allen Parkway. Police say the SUV was traveling westbound when it lost control, jumped a curb and went airborne before crashing into a tree around 8:15 a.m.
According to the O'Quinn Law Firm web site, O'Quinn was named one of the "100 Most Influence Lawyers in America," by the National Law Journal.
O'Quinn recently represented Virgie Arthur, the mother of the late Anna Nicole Smith, in a battle over what would happen to her body.
O'Quinn is a graduate of the University of Houston's Law Center.
A press conference is scheduled for this afternoon.
We'll have much more on this story on 39 News at 5, 5:30 and 9. |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:26:12 PM
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http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2009/10/29/houston-lawyer-john-oquinn-killed-in-wreck/
October 29, 2009, 12:50 PM ET
Houston Lawyer John O’Quinn Killed in Wreck
By Ashby Jones
Some sad news out of Houston to report on Thursday. Prominent Houston attorney John O’Quinn was killed this morning when an SUV in which he was riding slammed into a large tree after the driver lost control. Click here for the story, from the Houston Chronicle.
An unidentifed adult was also killed in the wreck. According to the Chron, it wasn’t immediately clear whether O’Quinn or the other victim was driving.
Around 8 a.m., the driver of a black Suburban moving west on a parkway outside downtown Houston skidded across the median, oncoming lanes and another median before the vehicle slammed into a tree, which was uprooted, Houston police Lt. L.J. Satterwhite told the Chron. O’Quinn and the other victim were dead at the scene.
O’Quinn was widely known as one of the most prominent and successful trial lawyers in the country. He won a $1 billion verdict in 2006 against Wyeth for its diet drug, fen-phen; wrested a $17.3 billion settlement from the tobacco industry on behalf of the state of Texas, and won $100 million on behalf of victims harmed by silicone breast implants made by Dow Corning.
He was known as an avid car collector.
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:28:11 PM
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http://www.law.com/jsp/tx/PubArticleTX.jsp?id=1202435034392&slreturn=1&hbxlogin=1
Houston Plaintiffs Lawyer John M. O'Quinn Dies in Auto Accident
By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys
Texas Lawyer
October 29, 2009
Nationally known plaintiffs lawyer John M. O'Quinn of The O'Quinn Law Firm was killed in an automobile accident this morning near downtown Houston. O'Quinn's death was confirmed by his former law partner Richard Laminack and by Dale Jefferson, a lawyer in Houston who represents O'Quinn in litigation.
O'Quinn was included in Texas Lawyer's "Legal Legends" magazine published in June 2000. That article appears below:
John O' Quinn
Simply one of the strongest plaintiffs lawyers around, John O'Quinn originally wanted to be an engineer. Graduating from Houston's Lamar High School, teachers urged him to pursue engineering, and he was accepted at Rice University. After two years, he knew it wasn't for him. So O'Quinn was sent to a career counselor who tested him and talked with him for a while.
"He said, 'You should be a lawyer. You should be a trial lawyer. You'd be great at it,' " O'Quinn says. And he was right: O'Quinn graduated from the University of Houston Law Center in 1967 at the top of his class.
School officials pushed O'Quinn to accept a job with Baker Botts because no graduates from UH had been hired there before. O'Quinn worked at the firm from 1967 to 1969, where he says he received great training. There, O'Quinn worked with partner Jim Kronzer, "The Crown" -- another Legal Legend -- as an associate. In fact, he came over to Kronzer, Abraham, Watkins & Steely, which Kronzer formed after he left Baker Botts.
O'Quinn hit his first million-dollar judgment in the early '70s. Soon after, he and four other lawyers at the firm struck out on their own to form Riddle, Murphrey, O'Quinn & Cannon. This new firm was listed by Forbes magazine at one point as one of the top 15 grossing firms in the country. O'Quinn went out on his own in 1981, at first as John M. O'Quinn & Associates and later as O'Quinn & Laminack, the current firm name. And he was soon on a roll.
He won a 1984 verdict of $105 million for the family of a chemical plant worker who died of leukemia after work exposure to benzene, a 1992 verdict of $25 million in a silicone breast implant case, a 1988 verdict of $600 million and a 1993 verdict of $400 million for businessman who said they were cheated, and a 1994 verdict of $40 million in another implant case. He has won more than 250 cases with verdicts of at least $1 million, and O'Quinn says his verdicts and settlements during the past decade exceed $20 billion.
In the benzene case, U.S. District Judge Hugh Gibson accused O'Quinn of hypnotizing the jury and required him, during a retrial, to stay at least 12 feet away from the jury at all times.
"What I try to do is humanize the case," O'Quinn says in explaining his style. With each case, he wants the jury to care about the plaintiff and what the plaintiff has lost. "Until you can get the case to that level, it's not going to happen, the really big verdict's not going to happen."
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:47:35 PM
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WVice over at Sarah's is saying:
the other person is his driver Johnnie. we think he might have had a heart attack.
________________
My condolences to his family and friends as well.
JMO |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 1:17:23 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by SheStone
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/091029_john_oquinn_killed_wreck
High-Profile Attorney John O'Quinn Killed in Car Wreck
Crash Happened Thursday on Allen Parkway
Updated: Thursday, 29 Oct 2009, 12:11 PM CDT
Published : Thursday, 29 Oct 2009, 11:34 AM CDT
DOUG DELONY
HOUSTON - FOX 26 News has learned high-profile attorney John O'Quinn was killed Thursday morning in an accident on Allen Parkway.
Another person was killed in the wreck as well, in which O'Quinn was a passenger.
Witnesses of the crash say the SUV O'Quinn was riding in slammed into a large tree next to the parkway's westbound lanes. While roads were slick due to overnight rains, the cause of the crash was not immediately known.
Representatives for O'Quinn will hold an afternoon press conference at his law firm.
O'Quinn, 68, was a trial lawyer made famous for multi-million and multi-billion dollar cases against a breast implant manufacturer and the tobacco industry. A 2006 report in Forbes estimates the lawyer won more than $1.5 billion for his firm.
He was also known for his $100 million car collection of over 600 vehicles, included John F. Kennedy's 1962 bubble top limousine and a Batmobile used in the making of a Batman film.
_______________________
My condolences to his family and friends.
JMO
Update from same link:
DOUG DELONY
HOUSTON - FOX 26 News has learned high-profile attorney John O'Quinn was killed Thursday morning in an accident on Allen Parkway.
O'Quinn was inside a Chevorlet Suburban traveling westbound at a high rate of speed when it jumped the median and slammed into a large tree, Houston police said. The crash happened around 8 a.m.
Another person, whose identity has not been released, was also killed.
While roads were slick due to overnight rains, the cause of the incident was not immediately known.
Representatives for O'Quinn will hold an afternoon press conference at his law firm.
O'Quinn, 68, was a trial lawyer made famous for multi-million and multi-billion dollar cases against a breast implant manufacturer and the tobacco industry. A 2006 report in Forbes estimates the lawyer won more than $1.5 billion for his firm.
"What I do is represent the powerless against the powerful. I've been blessed with talent, and I've got commitment and passion," O'Quinn told Texas Monthly in June 2000.
He was also known for his $100 million car collection of over 600 vehicles, included John F. Kennedy's 1962 bubble top limousine and a Batmobile used in the making of a Batman film.
Before launching his career, O'Quinn graduated from the University of Houston Law Center as the son of a car garage owner. Several Houston landmarks bear his name, including the football field at UH, the UH law library, and various medical center institutions and buildings.
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 1:18:58 PM
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From WVice over at Sarah's:
Don Clark will do a press conference at 3:00 pm on behalf of the O'Quinn Law Firm. |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 1:34:40 PM
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Prominent Houston lawyer dies in SUV crash
01:12 PM CDT on Thursday, October 29, 2009
KHOU-TV Staff
KHOU-TV
The black Chevrolet Suburban jumped the curb and crashed into a tree.
HOUSTON — Two people, including one of Houston’s most prominent attorneys, were killed Thursday morning in a single-vehicle crash on Allen Parkway.
Famed trial lawyer John O’Quinn was traveling westbound on Allen Parkway in a black Chevrolet Suburban with another man around 8:15 a.m. when the crash occurred.
Police at the scene said the SUV lost control, jumped the curb, went airborne and crashed into a tree on the eastbound service road.
The tree nearly cut the SUV in half, and both O’Quinn and the other man died at the scene.
“Certainly the roads being slick could have had something to do with it. It’s a very preliminary investigation. It will take some time to figure out exactly what happened,” Lt. L.J. Satterwhite of the Houston Police Department said.
A witness said the SUV appeared to be moving at a high rate of speed when it lost control.
She and a friend rushed to the crash site to help the men, but it was too late.
Investigators had traffic blocked for hours after the accident.
O’Quinn, founder of the O’Quinn Law Firm in Houston, made a name for himself handling plaintiff’s litigation, including lawsuits against breast implant manufacturers and tobacco companies.
More recently, he represented Anna Nicole Smith’s mother, Virgie Arthur, in a battle over the fate of the body of the late actress.
According to his official law firm bio, O’Quinn has been named one of the “100 Most Influential Lawyers in America” by the National Law Journal and among the five best trial lawyers of the past century by the Houston Chronicle, among other honors.
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http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa091029_wz_oquinndead.264ac2b0d.html
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 6:49:29 PM
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SUV crash kills prominent lawyer John O’Quinn
Colleagues mourn; accident also leaves a passenger dead
By DALE LEZON, PEGGY O'HARE and MARY FLOOD
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Oct. 29, 2009, 5:46PM
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6692411.html
Prominent Houston lawyer John O’Quinn was the man driving a sport utility vehicle that lost control on the rain-slicked surface of Allen Parkway and crashed into a large tree, killing him and his passenger this morning, based on preliminary information gathered by crash investigators, police said.
The passenger was identified as Johnny Lee Cutliff, 56, of the 5300 block of Bacher. Neither man was wearing a seat belt, said the police sources, who asked not to be identified.
How fast O’Quinn, 68, was driving has not yet been determined because investigators must pull the vehicle’s crash data computer, or so-called "black box," to determine that information. But witnesses told police he appeared to be driving between 50 and 60 mph, a Houston Police Department spokeswoman said. The speed limit there is 40 mph.
The black late-model Chevrolet Suburban was westbound in the 1900 block of Allen Parkway at a high rate of speed when the accident occurred about 8 a.m., officials said.
Police said it appeared that the SUV veered to the left, jumped a curb and careened over a grassy median, crossed the eastbound traffic lanes and hopped another curb onto a second median before smashing into the tree on the south side of Allen Parkway. Tire marks across the first median show the path of the hurtling SUV.
The slick road could have contributed to the crash, said Houston Police Department Lt. L. J. Satterwhite. Persistent drizzle was in the area about the time of the crash.
The front end, hood, roof and passenger side of the Suburban were badly crumpled. The windshield was shattered and the engine appeared to hang from the chassis. The battery, air filter and other debris were scattered on the Allen Parkway service road about 20 yards west of the crash site.
The SUV appeared to have wrapped around the trunk and the force of the impact uprooted the nearly 30-foot tall, leafy tree, which was one of several lining the second median. The Suburban’s rear came to rest on top of the uprooted trunk, and the tree was cut down so the Suburban could be towed off.
The driver’s side air bag, splashed with what appeared to be blood, was deployed, as well as others around the vehicle.
Investigators and work crews were still at the crash site more than three hours after the wreck. Under light drizzle, workers sawed all the limbs from the tree and then pulled the SUV away from the scarred trunk. Then they dug out the tree, piled the limbs and trunk into a container truck to be hauled away.
Houston lawyer Levi Benton, a former judge, said he ran into O’Quinn at Hobby Airport shortly after 7 a.m. this morning. The two lawyers were side by side in the security line headed to the gates.
"He said he was going to a mediation in San Antonio," said Benton, who was headed to Dallas himself. Benton said O’Quinn looked older than when he last saw him but otherwise seemed fine.
"He had his full strength. He shook my hand. He laughed. He had that great smile. He was John," said Benton, who was shocked to later hear O’Quinn for some reason had not gotten on the plane, only to be killed in a car crash on Allen Parkway.
Houston attorney Dan Cogdell said he was in Hobby Airport at 9:30 a.m. today and did not yet know of O’Quinn’s death when he heard an operator repeatedly paging O’Quinn, telling O’Quinn to report to a Southwest Airlines gate for departure. The operator paged O’Quinn for about 30 minutes, Cogdell estimated.
"It was very eerie," Cogdell said. "It seems to me they were holding a plane for him, which Southwest (Airlines) doesn’t usually do ... I thought it really strange that he would be flying commercial."
Cogdell said he later learned of O’Quinn’s death after his own flight was canceled and he returned to his office to see an announcement from the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association on the group’s list serve.
"Everyone is devastated,’’ said Neil C. McCabe, a lawyer who worked with O’Quinn as he watched officials clean up the scene. "John not only was the head of the law firm but a person who took care of all of us and we are going to miss him very much."
Though O’Quinn was "a lightning rod for controversy," he was always a gentleman, Cogdell said.
"In his day, he was an incredibly gifted trial lawyer," Cogdell said. "John was a controversial figure, but he was always a gentleman to me, and gave a lot to our community. Everybody’s just in a state of shock, even criminal lawyers."
Houston police said this morning's wreck is the sole fatal crash on Allen Parkway so far this year.
HPD officials recorded no fatal wrecks on Allen Parkway in 2008, 2007 and 2005. One fatal crash occurred in 2006 and six in 2004.
Chronicle reporters R.G. Ratcliffe, Brian Rogers, Mike Glenn and videographer Meg Loucks contributed to this report.
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 09:42:23 AM
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John O'Quinn dies at 68; Texas personal-injury lawyer
O'Quinn and his driver were killed in Houston when their SUV hit a tree. The lawyer had won mammoth verdicts in fen-phen and tobacco lawsuits.
Associated Press
October 30, 2009
(excerpt)
Flamboyant lawyer John O'Quinn, who won billions in verdicts against makers of breast implants, pharmaceuticals and tobacco products, died Thursday in a traffic wreck. He was 68.
Police said O'Quinn and a passenger were killed when the sport-utility vehicle he was driving skidded across the median of a rain-slicked parkway just outside downtown Houston, went airborne and slammed into a tree.
His law firm said O'Quinn's passenger, Johnny Cutliff, was the attorney's personal assistant and had worked there for 26 years.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-john-oquinn30-2009oct30,0,193264.story
For the full article click on the link.
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 09:44:07 AM
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Car Crashes Near Site of O'Quinn Death
Updated: Friday, 30 Oct 2009, 7:45 AM CDT
Published : Friday, 30 Oct 2009, 7:45 AM CDT
ALEXANDER SUPGUL
Web Producer
HOUSTON - One day after famed attorney John O'Quinn and a legal assistant died in a vehicle crash on Allen Parkway, another accident takes place only a few blocks away early on Friday morning.
Investigators say a female was driving a white car eastbound on a wet Allen Parkway when she lost control of the vehicle. The car moved up an embankment and rolled over near Montrose Boulevard.
The driver was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital in stable condition.
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/traffic/091030_allen_parkway_car_crash |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 09:48:18 AM
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Houstonians share memories of O'Quinn
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Oct. 29, 2009, 11:27PM
“He was hated by many adversaries, but loved being a trial lawyer in the fight. He was a ruthless courtroom lawyer, but a soft touch in real life. He spent much of his professional life spanking doctors but gave money to the Medical Center and to medical causes.”
— Michael A. Olivas, University of Houston professor of law
“If you'd been wronged and wanted someone on your side, it'd be John. … He was such a good lawyer that he probably could have argued either side of the breast implant litigation and won.”
— Dr. Franklin Rose, Houston plastic surgeon
“He'll be remembered as a great lawyer, one of Texas' greatest lawyers of all time. He still had a lot more lawyering to do, and I looked forward to more mentoring from him and more friendship.”
— Neil McCabe, member of the O'Quinn law firm
“He was driven, in part, by the need to be looked up to as a hero.”
— Nancy Rapoport, University of Houston Law Center dean 2000-06
“He said, ‘I've persuaded people to give millions of dollars to my clients, I think I know a little something about persuasion.'”
— Chris Bell, former Houston City Council member, on O'Quinn's offer of $2.5 million and strategic advice for Bell's failed 2006 gubernatorial campaign
“What a loss for this community. He was a very charitable individual who made a lot of things happen.”
— Rebecca White, president/CEO of Houston Area Women's Center, to which O'Quinn donated $1.1 million
“Anyone who aspires to be a trial attorney looks up to someone like John O'Quinn. He's someone that's more than just a name on the library.”
— Matthew Salo, a third-year law student at the University of Houston and editor in chief of the Houston Law Review
“He was always willing to share his thoughts, his ideas, his secrets, his talents with other people. Maybe he thought no one could ever duplicate him.”
— Randy Sorrels, of Abraham,Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto and Friend; and former president of the Houston Bar Association
Compiled by Chronicle reporters Todd Ackerman, Chris Moran and Brian Rogers
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6694000.html |
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 1:49:56 PM
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Posted by WVice at Sarah's:
The O'Quinn Law Firm posted this on their website.
Funeral plans at bottom.
Houston Personal Injury Lawyer
Auto Accidents • Product Liability • Commercial Litigation • Arbitration
October 29, 2009
The O'Quinn Law Firm has suffered a profound shock from the tragic deaths of attorney John M. O'Quinn and Johnny Cutliff. We are mourning and will continue to do so for some time. However, the firm remains committed to doing what Mr. O'Quinn taught us so well, putting our clients' interests before our own. The firm remains strong. It is fully solvent and has the financial security which insures the firm's ability to service its cases, both present and in the future. Mr. O'Quinn provided for this eventuality by establishing a succession plan which also assures both the financial and legal continuity of the firm. That plan is now in place.
Fourteen years ago, Mr. O'Quinn appointed attorney Christian A. Steed as Managing Attorney for the firm. Mr. Steed will continue in that position as the firm moves forward to service its clients and cases. The attorneys and staff who have handled this firm's cases will continue to do so as they have in the past, consistent with the proud traditions of this firm. Our heads are bowed in grief. But we know John O'Quinn would not want us to waiver in our commitment to our clients. We will not do so.
Sincerely yours,
The O'Quinn Law Firm
Funeral arrangements for Mr. O'Quinn:
Viewing Tuesday, November 3, 4:00pm to 8:00pm
George H. Lewis Funeral Home
Ten Ten Bering Drive
Houston, Texas 77057
(713) 789-3005
Funeral Wednesday, November 4, 11:00am
Second Baptist Church
6400 Woodway
Houston, Texas 77057
(713) 465-3408
The O'Quinn Law Firm
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SheStone
Senior Member
1131 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 10:49:28 PM
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Funeral for top lawyer O'Quinn set for Wednesday
By PEGGY O'HARE
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Oct. 30, 2009, 8:14PM
Services for prominent Houston attorney John O'Quinn, who was killed Thursday when the SUV he was driving struck a tree, have been scheduled for next week. Funeral arrangements for his passenger, Johnny Cutliff, are pending.
Visitation for O'Quinn will be 4 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday at the Geo. H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home, 1010 Bering. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Second Baptist Church, 6400 Woodway.
Autopsies determined that both men died from multiple blunt force injuries they suffered in the single-car accident, the Harris County Medical Examiner's Office said on Friday.
Some witnesses told Houston police that O'Quinn, 68, was driving close to 60 mph when he lost control of a Chevrolet Suburban registered to his law firm in the 1900 block of Allen Parkway at 8 a.m. Thursday, said Capt. Bill Staney, supervisor of the Houston Police Department's Vehicular Crimes Unit. The speed limit is 40 mph on that portion of Allen Parkway, which was slick with rain at the time.
“It's pretty clear that he was exceeding the speed limit,” Staney said.
However, O'Quinn's exact speed is not yet known since investigators had not yet downloaded the data from the vehicle's crash computer on Friday, Staney said.
Police are also checking to see if O'Quinn was using his cellular phone at the time or whether he was distracted by anything else, Staney said.
“We do want to know what the cause and factors are,” Staney said. “In any fatality, we would look and see if there were any driver distractions. We're trying to find out ... what led up to the fatal incident.”
The high-profile attorney's cellular phone was found in the crumpled vehicle, but Staney said he did not remember where it was located.
There are no indications that alcohol or drugs played any role in the accident, Staney said. Toxicology reports are still pending.
The sports utility vehicle crossed over a median into oncoming lanes of traffic, then went into another grassy median, where it hit a tree at high speed. Neither O'Quinn nor Cutliff, 56, were wearing seat belts, and both were dead at the scene.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6695650.html |
Edited by - SheStone on 10/30/2009 10:50:16 PM |
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Sophie
Junior Member
199 Posts |
Posted - 10/31/2009 : 5:32:38 PM
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“We do want to know what the cause and factors are,” Staney said. “In any fatality, we would look and see if there were any driver distractions. We're trying to find out ... what led up to the fatal incident.”
The high-profile attorney's cellular phone was found in the crumpled vehicle, but Staney said he did not remember where it was located.
There are no indications that alcohol or drugs played any role in the accident, Staney said. Toxicology reports are still pending.
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I certainly hope the very best and most thorough investigation is performed in the matter of these tragic and heartbreaking deaths. This is a great loss, and could take a toll on justice.
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chalkoutline
New Member
USA
70 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 7:46:24 PM
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RIP
Mr. O'Quinn and Mr. Cutliff |
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piper
Average Member
519 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2009 : 08:59:31 AM
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John O'Quinn:
"Isn't it strange that princes and kings
And clowns that caper in sawdust rings
And common folks like you and me
Are all builders in eternity?
To each is given a book of rules
A block of stone and a bag of tools,
And each must shape ere time has flown
A stumbling block or stepping stone."
Anonymous
May God grant you eternal peace.
You used the gifts He provided to
generously share with many.
Like autumn leaves on a tree the thieves are falling down. Setting out the rakes and the baskets now; getting the marshmallows out for s'mores.... Who has the match to light this pile? |
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Tragic News
