LAURINBURG — Both the City of Laurinburg and its chief of fire Jordan McQueen have less than 30 days to respond to a wrongful death lawsuit they were named defendants in.
Maxine Creech White filed the civil suit on March 27, nearly two years to the day after the fatal car crash that resulted in the death of former Scotland County Sheriff Carlton Alfred White.
According to dialogue on the incident report, on March 28, 2022 at about 2:26 p.m., the vehicle operated by Alfred White was stopped east on Prince Street in Laurinburg while McQueen was traveling north on Peden Street in a city-owned vehicle. At the intersection of Peden and Prince, White “failed to yield the right-of-way” and struck the vehicle McQueen operated. White’s vehicle came to rest on Peden Street facing west and McQueen’s came to a rest facing North on Peden Street.
White was transported to the Grand Strand Medical Center, where he later succumbed to injuries sustained during the incident on April 21.
According to the complaint filed, McQueen “failed to stop and collided with the passenger side” of White’s vehicle.
The complaint accuses McQueen of negligence, stating the fire chief failed to keep a proper lookout, maintain proper and reasonable control of the vehicle, stay in his lane of traffic, and slow down and obey traffic laws.
The complaint states that the city “is vicariously liable, due to negligence of their employees or agents.”
The complaint also states that since the incident, White’s family has been “deprived of his support, services, care, protection and assistance” and have “experienced and endured conscious pain and suffering.”
The plaintiff is seeking a jury trial for reimbursement for punitive and actual damages in an amount “ascertained by a judge.”
White was sheriff for Scotland County from 1978 until 1986. He continued his career with the North Carolina Department of Corrections and later with Loomis Armored Services.
The Laurinburg’s city manager told a news agency that the City “can’t comment on any potential litigation.”