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An insurance company is asking for the dismissal of a lawsuit seeking payment of a $500,000 policy on the life of a man who was shot to death by police.
Molly Farrand, of Centerville, Utah, sued American General Life Insurance Co. in 2016 for payment of the policy, according to The Standard-Examiner. Farrand’s husband, Vincent, took the policy in 2011. He was killed in a confrontation with police officers in 2014.
American General maintains that Vincent Farrand’s death was “suicide by cop,” and therefore not covered under his policy.
“The undisputed facts show that Mr. Farrand’s death was the result of his own criminal and intentional conduct when he exited his home, gun in hand, intoxicated, and confronted police officers,” attorneys for American General said in court filings.
According to the insurer, Vincent Farrand defied repeated police commands to drop his weapon and told the officer to just “do it.”
“Finally, he raised his gun toward the officer, who then shot him,” the company said in court filings. “Mr. Farrand’s death is certainly a tragedy, but it is not a covered ‘accident.’”
When American General first denied the claim, it told Molly Farrand in a letter that Vincent “was suicidal and wanted ‘suicide by cop.’” The letter also pointed out that Vincent Farrand had a blood alcohol level of 0.22 at the time of his death, The Standard-Examiner reported.
Molly Farrand’s attorneys countered that in order for American General to justify denying the claim, “they would have to make the untenable argument that when interacting with law enforcement – even with a gun, considering that Utah is an ‘open carry’ state – the expected and anticipated result is the police officer shooting the suspect. Utah law is clear that Utahans have the lawful right to ‘open carry’ weapons, especially on one’s own property.”
But American General said that Vincent Farrand’s policy defined “accidental injury” as an “accidental bodily injury, which is unforeseen and suddenly sustained without the design or intent of (the) injured person.” The company said that a reasonable person would anticipate that Vincent Farrand’s conduct “would result in the use of deadly force against him. Under the objective standard, this was no ‘accidental’ injury.”
Prior to suing the insurer, Molly Farrand filed a $2 million civil rights lawsuit against Centerville and Jason Read, the officer who shot Vincent Farrand. The city settled the suit and paid Molly Farrand $127,000 in damages, but did not admit fault.
