Wrongfully sued couple dismissed from wrongful death suit

Four months after being named in a wrongful death suit, Cynthia and Larry Chandler have been dismissed from the litigation.

In 2011, the Chandlers sold their recreational vehicle. Several months later, the new owners of the RV were in a collision that ultimately claimed a man’s life and led to a lawsuit against the Etoile couple.

As previously reported, on July 6 Roberta Leyendecker, the widow of Barry Leyendecker, filed a wrongful death suit in Jefferson County District Court against the Chandlers, Texas Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance and Gordon and Jerry Buchleiter, the two men who allegedly caused the collision.

Court records show that on Oct. 11 Roberta Leyendecker filed a notice of non-suit, stating that she no longer wished to pursue her claim against that couple and requesting that all costs be assessed against the party incurring same.

A month earlier, the couple had paid a visit to the office of Provost Umphrey attorney Paul Ferguson Jr., counsel for the plaintiff, and delivered documents clearly showing the Chandlers sold the vehicle before the incident, the Chandlers told the Southeast Texas Record.

“The title plainly states that we don’t own the RV,” Cynthia said during a Sept. 20 interview. “Shouldn’t these lawyers do their homework before suing us? He has proof we don’t own it. He’s just sitting on it.”

According to the lawsuit, on April 23 Gordon Buchleiter was towing the RV. Jerry Buchleiter was operating it. The men lost control of the combined unit, causing the vehicles to block both the north and south lanes of Highway 69.

Leyendecker crashed into the combined unit and died from his injures, the suit states.

The suit further contends that the Leyendeckers were covered by a Texas Farm policy and that their coverage was not adequate to compensate for the damages suffered.

Roberta Leyendecker is suing for actual and wrongful death damages.

Judge Gary Sanderson, 6oth District Court, is assigned to the case.

Case No. B192-655