PROVIDENCE – A California jury has awarded almost $19 million to a former city councilor after she was struck by a van and severely injured in a state park in June 2023.
A jury in Monterey County, Calif., determined last week the state was responsible when then-Providence city councilor Helen Anthony was struck and run over by a 2013 Polaris GEM electric vehicle while crossing the entry road to Point Lobos State Natural Reserve in northern California, WPRI-TV CBS 12 reported Tuesday.
Jack Arnold, 82, a state park docent, was the driver of the vehicle.
The impact broke 22 of Anthony's ribs and fractured her face and jaw, WPRI reported. She also suffered a spinal injury.
Anthony and her husband, Doug, filed a civil suit against Arnold and the Calif. Department of Parks and Recreation.
“While I’m grateful for the outcome, no verdict can truly make up for everything we’ve endured – or undo the permanent impact on my health and my career," Helen Anthony said in a statement. "But I choose to focus on healing and on gratitude. I’m grateful to the jury for their careful deliberation and for rendering a verdict that acknowledges the scope of our loss. More importantly, I’m grateful to the jury for holding the state of California Parks Department accountable for not properly training and supervising their docents and for putting visitors at risk. It is my hope that as the result of this case, the State changes its safety protocols so what happened to me doesn’t happen to any other visitor in a state park.”
Anthony, who represents Ward 2, including the neighborhoods of Blackstone and Wayland, took office in 2019 and officially stepped down on Sept. 1, 2024.
"As I continue to heal from the traumatic injuries I suffered when I was struck by a van in June 2023, my neurologist has recommended that I devote more time to my recovery,” Anthony wrote when she announced her resignation. “I’m proud to have served Ward 2 and the city of Providence and to have chaired the council’s Finance Committee. Unfortunately, the demands of those roles are hindering my ability to heal. Working on behalf of this incredible community has been tremendously rewarding.”
Meanwhile, the case moved through the civil court system in California and eventually went to trial.
“[The state] made no offer whatsoever that made any sense to the Anthonys,” Anthony’s attorney Roger Dreyer told WPRI. “Helen Anthony didn’t choose to be run down in the crosswalk of a park. Doug Anthony didn’t choose to have his wife nearly killed and impacted for the rest of her life. So, these aren’t choices they made.”
California State Parks spokesperson Marty Greenstein told WPRI Monday that “the department is evaluating its legal options.”
“California State Parks respects the jury’s decision and expresses its sincere and deepest sympathy to Helen Anthony and her family for the injuries she suffered at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve,” Greenstein said. “State Parks is thankful for the thousands of volunteers who dedicate their time to the nation’s largest state park system, and this unfortunate accident doesn’t diminish our appreciation for our docents and volunteers.”
