Released on: May 16, 2008, 1:25 pm

Press Release Author: The Ammons Law Firm

Industry: Law

Press Release Summary: HOUSTON – A jury in Houston has awarded $5.1 million to the
family of a Harris County deputy constable who was killed by a drunk driver in
February 2004.

Press Release Body: HOUSTON – A jury in Houston has awarded $5.1 million to the
family of a Harris County deputy constable who was killed by a drunk driver in
February 2004.

The verdict follows three days of trial in the 269th Judicial District Court in
Harris County. The jury’s award includes $1.5 million in punitive damages.

Frank Scott Claborn was working a late night detail for a construction company on
the West Sam Houston Tollway when his police car was hit by a pickup truck driven by
then-22-year-old Donald Lee Fincher. Mr. Fincher, whose blood alcohol level was
more than three times the legal limit, later pleaded guilty to a charge of
intoxication manslaughter and was sentenced to four years in prison.

Mr. Fincher is general manager of the Fincher Motor Company located in Houston and
Tomball, Texas.

“Nothing will bring back Scott Claborn so that he can be with his wife and mom and
his son,” says attorney Rob Ammons of the Ammons Law Firm in Houston, who represents
the family in the civil case against Mr. Fincher. “But the jury’s award sends a
strong message that we can’t tolerate this sort of behavior, especially when it
takes the life of a police officer.”

Mr. Ammons says the family reached a confidential settlement with Houston-based W.W.
Webber, Inc., the construction company involved, prior to trial. Assisting him and
representing Mr. Claborn’s mother was attorney John Devine of Woodfill & Pressler
LLP in Houston.

While investigating the case, Mr. Ammons discovered that Mr. Claborn’s boss, Harris
County Precinct 4 Constable Ron Hickman, wrote a letter to the Texas Board of
Pardons and Paroles seeking early release for Mr. Fincher. Mr. Fincher was released
on parole in May 2007.

Mr. Ammons is an attorney with a national practice that focuses on the prosecution
of automobile product liability cases, including vehicle rollovers, fuel-fed fires,
crashworthiness cases, and tire failures.

More information is available at http://www.ammonslaw.com.

For more information on the $5.1 million verdict in the Claborn case, please contact
Mark Annick at 800-559-4534, 214-213-1754 or mark@androvett.com


Web Site: http://www.ammonslaw.com

Contact Details: Mark Annick
Androvett Legal Media
2501 Oak Lawn Avenue, Suite 650
Dallas, TX 75219
214-559-4630
214-559-0852(fax)
mark@androvett.com