If Tony Stewart spent excessive time worrying about the wrongful death lawsuit that the family of Kevin Ward Jr. has brought against him, it may have been wasted energy.
ESPN reported about what Stewart might expect to take place in the lawsuit process against him, and ESPN legal analyst Lester Munson said that legally speaking, the driver has nothing to fear.
Tony Stewart gives $1,400 to family whose three sons died in a car wreck after overhearing incident
"Legally, there is no reason for Stewart to try to settle," Munson said. "He can win this case."
The issue for Stewart, according to ESPN, is the possible testimony that may eventually come out from having to go to trial. But if Stewart were worried about what might come out - ESPN listed the Bill Cosby subpoena from 2005 coming out 10 years later as an example - he probably would've tried to settle already.
Kevin Ward Jr.'s family files wrongful death lawsuit against embattled Tony Stewart
"This gives somebody with the power of subpoena a chance to root around in the life of Tony Stewart. There's no doubt about that," Munson said. "And that would be of some concern. He would know, and (Stewart's attorney James) Voyles would know, whether there's anything to worry about there. If there's something to worry about, they would have settled without the lawsuit probably."
The family is accusing Stewart of being responsible for killing Ward at an Aug. 9, 2014 dirt-track race in upstate New York. The drivers had been racing side by side - whether contact was made is disputable - but Ward ended up hitting a wall.
Angry, Ward got out of his car and walked on the track, waiting for Stewart while the race was still going. Reports indicated that Ward had marijuana in his system when he got out of his vehicle and got too close to Stewart, whose right real wheel caught Ward and hurled him about 25 feet airborne. Ward hit the pavement and died about 45 minutes later.
So far, the court of public opinion has been on Stewart's side.
"A jury needs to see the video, learn of Tony Stewart's past, and give the verdict that delivers justice," said Mark Lanier of The Lanier Law Firm in New York, which is representing the family, to the Orlando Sentinel. "Tony's actions took the life of a marvelous young, talented man."
The Sentinel added, "Translation: Stewart is a hothead who purposely ran over a young man, and let's ignore the facts that the kid had THC in his system and he should have followed race protocol by staying in the car."
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