"Late for work"

The Muskrat Hunter discovers Marilyn's attitude towards strangers, from the Westword archives:

One of the most bruising battles of the current election has been the heated contest between state senator Marilyn Musgrave and state senate president Stan Matsunaka, squaring off for the 4th Congressional District seat being vacated by Bob Schaffer. But according to Greeley attorney Richard Blundell, whatever licks Musgrave, the Republican candidate in a heavily GOP district, delivers to Matsunaka can't possibly be as damaging as the bang-up job she's already done on his clients, Ken and Susie Sandoval.

According to a lawsuit recently filed by Blundell in Adams County, motorist Musgrave rear-ended the Sandovals' automobile when they were stopped at a red light in Brighton last year. Blundell claims that not only did Musgrave drive "with willful or wanton disregard for the safety of others," but she refused to use her cell phone to summon help and told the Sandovals that no accident report was necessary.

"Believe me, the cops don't have to be called," Musgrave reportedly said. "I know, because my husband is an insurance agent." After exchanging insurance information with the Sandovals, Musgrave left the scene, claiming she was late for work, Blundell says.

The lawsuit alleges that Ken Sandoval, a heart-transplant recipient and recent stroke victim, "was in obvious substantial pain and discomfort as a result of being injured" in the crash, but Musgrave offered no assistance. "She acted like it didn't make any difference to her," Blundell says. Although the damage to the Sandovals' car exceeded $1,000, well above the $500 limit beyond which an accident report must be filed, Blundell says his clients believed Musgrave and never bothered to contact the police. If they had, he adds, Musgrave "could have lost her license for leaving the scene of an accident."

The Sandovals filed suit after Blundell contacted Musgrave's insurer (and her husband's employer), which offered a paltry $4,500 to settle the case; the Sandovals' medical bills now total around $15,000. Musgrave campaign manager Guy Short did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

But in an October 23 column published by the Longmont Daily Times-Call, Musgrave called for tougher state limits on civil litigation and blasted "the predatory tactics of American trial lawyers." (She also slapped Matsunaka, calling him her "trial lawyer opponent.") Incensed, Blundell fired off a letter to the paper that has yet to be published. "I think people should know why she wants to take away the right to sue," he fumes.