NorCal Nurse Awarded $300K After Cruise Fall

A Miami federal jury awarded $300,000 to a Vacaville nurse who said Carnival kept serving her tequila before a fall on the Carnival Radiance. (abcnews.com) Jurors ruled on April 11 that Carnival was negligent after Diana Sanders, 45, drank at least 14 shots over about eight and a half hours on Jan. 5, 2024, while sailing on a three-day Baja California cruise out of Los Angeles. (abcnews.com) Court records described Sanders as visibly intoxicated before the fall, and reports on the case say she went down a stairway and ended up in a crew-only area after leaving a bar late that night. (nytimes.com) The case turned on over-service: whether bartenders should have stopped serving alcohol to a passenger who was already impaired. Sanders alleged crew members kept pouring shots while she was slurring her speech, smelled of alcohol and was acting belligerent. (usatoday.com) Cruise injury cases often land in South Florida because major cruise contracts require lawsuits to be filed there, even when the voyage starts in California or another state. That put a Northern California passenger, a Los Angeles departure and a Florida courtroom in the same case. (abcnews.com) The drink count also drew attention because Sanders had bought Carnival’s “Cheers!” package, which one report said allows up to 15 alcoholic drinks in 24 hours. Her lawyer argued that package structure can push both passengers and servers toward the limit. (finance.yahoo.com) Carnival said it disagrees with the verdict and plans to challenge it. The company told multiple outlets it believes there are grounds for a new trial and an appeal. (usatoday.com) For now, the verdict stands as a jury finding that a cruise line can share responsibility when a passenger keeps getting served alcohol and is hurt afterward. Whether the $300,000 award survives appeal will be decided in the next round of court filings. (today.com)