Fatality on Set of Allman Film Bio Has Triggered Production Cautionary Tale

Plaintiffs: Allman Involved Day-to-Day

Harris said testimony in Allman's legal fight with producers of the movie showed Allman was very involved in the day-to-day operations of the film. Allman had sued to block the continued filming of the movie. Harris pointed to a recent cross-examination of producer Randall Miller by David Long-Daniels ' a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig in Atlanta who represents Allman and his company ' in a Savannah courtroom in that case. “That was one of the bases we relied on for suing,” Harris said the day after his firm filed the suit against Allman and the others involved in the production.

Allman had asked producers to stop filming the movie after Jones died and the other crew members were hurt. He then filed his lawsuit to enjoin them from filming, arguing that his agreement with the producers had expired because deadlines hadn't been met.

According to Harris, the testimony in Allman's suit showed that Allman, who was executive producer on the film project, “knew full well what was happening. He knew they were going to film on a railroad track.”

Allman dropped his lawsuit the day after Miller testified. Long-Daniels and Savannah lawyer Donnie Dixon, who represented Miller and Unclaimed Freight Productions Inc., announced in court they had come to an agreement, The Associated Press reported. Harris said his firm sent a monitor to the proceedings and then ordered a transcript. He added that the Jones lawsuit also relies on other public statements about Allman's involvement in the movie.

'Unreasonably'Dangerous' Set

The Jones complaint alleges: “Despite the fact that they planned to film a scene on active railroad tracks, and despite their knowledge of the danger presented by filming a scene on active railroad tracks, none of the Midnight Rider defendants or their agents, representatives, contractors or employees obtained the proper permission or approval from defendant CSX to conduct filming on the trestle bridge.” The complaint goes on to say that the defendants concealed this fact from the rest of the crew, including Sarah.

The lawsuit further alleges the defendants selected an “unreasonably dangerous site for the filming location” and failed to take safety measures or keep a look out for trains. The lawsuit claims that a representative from Rayonier, the property owner, told film producers that no more than two trains per day would cross the trestle. They waited for two trains to pass before they placed their equipment and set ' including a metal hospital bed for a dream sequence ' onto the track. When the next train approached, the crew had no way to exit the narrow track on top of the trestle, the suit says.

“Several members of the crew, including Sarah, were not able to escape the path of the oncoming train, and some crew members, equipment and the hospital bed remained on the trestle bridge as the train approached,” the lawsuit states. “The resulting train collision and the flying debris caused Sarah's death.”

The lawsuit also charges that CSX was negligent because the crew of the first two trains did not warn the third train of the presence of the film crew near the track.

Allman Says He Was'Just Consultant

But Allman's lawyer Long-Daniels e-mailed a statement two days after the Jones family's suit was filed saying his client should not have been included as a defendant in that complaint. Allman was “deeply saddened to hear of the tragic loss” to the Jones family, Long-Daniel's e-mail said. “While the lawsuit filed this week by the Jones family was expected, the inclusion of my clients is unfortunate, unwarranted and without merit.”

Long-Daniels added: “Mr. Allman simply provided an option to acquire motion picture rights to his life story and his autobiography. It is undisputed from the testimony at the recent court hearing that Mr. Allman and his representative did not have any knowledge that 'live people [would be] on a live train track.' My clients were not at the location when this tragedy occurred nor have they ever been to that location. In fact, they had no role in securing any location for the making of the movie or the actual physical production of the film. They provided creative input on the script and the rights about Mr. Allman's life, and consulted about casting and music.”

Harris says it's too soon to know what amount of money the plaintiffs will seek. “This is the precise kind of case where a jury would value her life,” he said of Sarah Jones. “Every witness has talked about how fantastic she was.”

The Jones family's lawsuit makes claims for negligence as well as punitive damages and attorney fees. “I believe the negligence in this case rises to the level of punitive conduct,” Harris said. He added it will take discovery in the lawsuit to find out who bears the most responsibility.

[Editor's Note: Georgia's liberal tax credits have prompted a dramatic increase in film and TV production in the state. (See, "Production Incentives," Georgia.org.) For example, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution determined there was a total of 142 feature-film and TV productions in Georgia in fiscal year 2013. "Economic development officials say that translates into $940 million in direct investment," the newspaper reported in February 2014.

But rapid growth has strained the system. According to the newspaper, "[M]ovie set safety in Georgia is policed entirely by federal officials with OSHA [i.e. , the Occupational Safety and Health Administration], the national workplace safety watchdog, because the state has no locally-based agency of its own, as is the case in the longtime moviemaking powerhouse of California. [Georgia's l]ocal governments, which must issue permits to film on public property, check to see if a film production has insurance and whether it poses any danger to local residents. But they don't oversee on-set safety.” The newspaper added that since 2010, OSHA has launched three movie-set investigations in Georgia, resulting in two being fined, “although both were negotiated down.”]

Katheryn Hayes Tucker writes for The Daily Report, an ALM sibling publication of Entertainment Law & Finance based in Fulton County, GA.

Gregg Allman's recent lawsuit to block production of the movie about his life ' filed after a film crew worker died in a train accident on the set ' helped cement his role as a defendant in the wrongful death case now brought by the worker's parents.

Jeffrey Harris and Stephen Lowry of Harris Penn Lowry's Savannah, GA, office filed a wrongful death and negligence lawsuit on May 21 in Chatham County State Court on behalf of the parents of the camera assistant killed when the train crashed into the movie set in rural South Georgia. Jones v. Film Allman, STCV1400752.

Richard and Elizabeth Jones, parents of Sarah Elizabeth Jones, sued Allman and the producers of the movie Midnight Rider, based on Allman's 2012 memoir, My Cross to Bear. The lawsuit names as defendants Allman and a list of producers and contractors affiliated with the movie. Jones, 27, died, and other members of the crew were injured on February 20 as they were filming a scene on a railroad trestle bridge near Jesup on property owned by Rayonier Performance Fibers, the lawsuit states. The plaintiffs claim that the film crew had permission from Rayonier to use the property but did not have clearance from CSX Transportation Inc., owner of the railroad, which is also named as a defendant.

Plaintiffs: Allman Involved Day-to-Day

Harris said testimony in Allman's legal fight with producers of the movie showed Allman was very involved in the day-to-day operations of the film. Allman had sued to block the continued filming of the movie. Harris pointed to a recent cross-examination of producer Randall Miller by David Long-Daniels ' a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig in Atlanta who represents Allman and his company ' in a Savannah courtroom in that case. “That was one of the bases we relied on for suing,” Harris said the day after his firm filed the suit against Allman and the others involved in the production.

Allman had asked producers to stop filming the movie after Jones died and the other crew members were hurt. He then filed his lawsuit to enjoin them from filming, arguing that his agreement with the producers had expired because deadlines hadn't been met.

According to Harris, the testimony in Allman's suit showed that Allman, who was executive producer on the film project, “knew full well what was happening. He knew they were going to film on a railroad track.”

Allman dropped his lawsuit the day after Miller testified. Long-Daniels and Savannah lawyer Donnie Dixon, who represented Miller and Unclaimed Freight Productions Inc., announced in court they had come to an agreement, The Associated Press reported. Harris said his firm sent a monitor to the proceedings and then ordered a transcript. He added that the Jones lawsuit also relies on other public statements about Allman's involvement in the movie.

'Unreasonably'Dangerous' Set

The Jones complaint alleges: “Despite the fact that they planned to film a scene on active railroad tracks, and despite their knowledge of the danger presented by filming a scene on active railroad tracks, none of the Midnight Rider defendants or their agents, representatives, contractors or employees obtained the proper permission or approval from defendant CSX to conduct filming on the trestle bridge.” The complaint goes on to say that the defendants concealed this fact from the rest of the crew, including Sarah.

The lawsuit further alleges the defendants selected an “unreasonably dangerous site for the filming location” and failed to take safety measures or keep a look out for trains. The lawsuit claims that a representative from Rayonier, the property owner, told film producers that no more than two trains per day would cross the trestle. They waited for two trains to pass before they placed their equipment and set ' including a metal hospital bed for a dream sequence ' onto the track. When the next train approached, the crew had no way to exit the narrow track on top of the trestle, the suit says.

“Several members of the crew, including Sarah, were not able to escape the path of the oncoming train, and some crew members, equipment and the hospital bed remained on the trestle bridge as the train approached,” the lawsuit states. “The resulting train collision and the flying debris caused Sarah's death.”

The lawsuit also charges that CSX was negligent because the crew of the first two trains did not warn the third train of the presence of the film crew near the track.

Allman Says He Was'Just Consultant

But Allman's lawyer Long-Daniels e-mailed a statement two days after the Jones family's suit was filed saying his client should not have been included as a defendant in that complaint. Allman was “deeply saddened to hear of the tragic loss” to the Jones family, Long-Daniel's e-mail said. “While the lawsuit filed this week by the Jones family was expected, the inclusion of my clients is unfortunate, unwarranted and without merit.”

Long-Daniels added: “Mr. Allman simply provided an option to acquire motion picture rights to his life story and his autobiography. It is undisputed from the testimony at the recent court hearing that Mr. Allman and his representative did not have any knowledge that 'live people [would be] on a live train track.' My clients were not at the location when this tragedy occurred nor have they ever been to that location. In fact, they had no role in securing any location for the making of the movie or the actual physical production of the film. They provided creative input on the script and the rights about Mr. Allman's life, and consulted about casting and music.”

Harris says it's too soon to know what amount of money the plaintiffs will seek. “This is the precise kind of case where a jury would value her life,” he said of Sarah Jones. “Every witness has talked about how fantastic she was.”

The Jones family's lawsuit makes claims for negligence as well as punitive damages and attorney fees. “I believe the negligence in this case rises to the level of punitive conduct,” Harris said. He added it will take discovery in the lawsuit to find out who bears the most responsibility.

[Editor's Note: Georgia's liberal tax credits have prompted a dramatic increase in film and TV production in the state. (See, "Production Incentives," Georgia.org.) For example, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution determined there was a total of 142 feature-film and TV productions in Georgia in fiscal year 2013. "Economic development officials say that translates into $940 million in direct investment," the newspaper reported in February 2014.

But rapid growth has strained the system. According to the newspaper, "[M]ovie set safety in Georgia is policed entirely by federal officials with OSHA [i.e. , the Occupational Safety and Health Administration], the national workplace safety watchdog, because the state has no locally-based agency of its own, as is the case in the longtime moviemaking powerhouse of California. [Georgia's l]ocal governments, which must issue permits to film on public property, check to see if a film production has insurance and whether it poses any danger to local residents. But they don't oversee on-set safety.” The newspaper added that since 2010, OSHA has launched three movie-set investigations in Georgia, resulting in two being fined, “although both were negotiated down.”]

Katheryn Hayes Tucker writes for The Daily Report, an ALM sibling publication of Entertainment Law & Finance based in Fulton County, GA.