In Episode 1 of this three-part series, you will meet Tierney Darden, a young woman and dancer who suffered a life-changing injury at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in August of 2015.
Tierney, her mom, and one of her sisters had just flown home from Minnesota, where they were shopping for bridesmaids’ dresses for an upcoming family wedding. As they were waiting outside the airport to be picked up by Tierney’s dad, a strong storm blew through the area. To avoid the rain, the ladies sought shelter behind a pedestrian vestibule. Unfortunately, the shelters had deteriorated and were not secured to the pavement. The shelter Tierney and her family were behind dislodged from the fasteners, collapsed on top of Tierney, and severed her spinal cord.
Listen in as Tierney and her family adjust to their new life and ultimately pursue justice against the city of Chicago, which was responsible for maintaining the condition of the shelters.
You Will Meet:
⚖️ Tierney Darden, Plaintiff
- A young woman who was on her way home from a family trip when she was paralyzed at O’Hare Airport
- “Next thing I know is I’m running, and I get hit in the head. I see like a white flash, and then I’m on the ground, and my legs went completely numb.”
⚖️ Trudy Darden
- Tierney’s mother, who was with her at the time of her injury
- “How did something that heavy that should have been bolted to the pavement fall on top of us? There’s no reason that that should happen.”
⚖️ David Darden
- Tierney’s father, who was on his way to pick up his family when the incident occurred
- “I got out of my vehicle and saw the crowd of people around Tierney and Tierney on the ground. I knew something bad had happened. We knew it was severe then.”
⚖️ Patrick A. Salvi Sr., Partner at Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard
- Lead attorney representing Tierney in her case against the city of Chicago
- “How sad it was to see a young lady whose main joy in life was dancing and wanted to operate a dance studio as a profession -of course, that was taken from her, but then she was afflicted with this terrible pain syndrome.”
⚖️ Patrick A. Salvi II, Partner at Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard
- Attorney representing Tierney in her case against the city of Chicago
- “There really isn’t any amount of money any human being would accept to have Tierney’s existence. The team was talking about potentially asking for as much as a hundred million from a jury. I asked the question, why wouldn’t we ask for $200 million?”
⚖️ Tara R. Devine, Partner at Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard
- Attorney representing Tierney in her case against the city of Chicago
- “I do believe that had this happened to someone else who innately in their nature was not an optimistic, positive, love the world type of girl, I could easily see other people throwing in the towel. That wasn’t an option for her.”
⚖️ Eirene N. Salvi, Associate Attorney at Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard
- Attorney representing Tierney in her case against the city of Chicago
- “We had our goals in mind as to what the case was worth, and we just didn’t really think that the city would come close enough for it to take care of Tierney to fully compensate her for what they took away from her.”
