Three people who sued Dodge City over an August 2007 brawl at Dodge City Raceway Park have settled their claims against the city, former racetrack promoter Brad Maxwell and two former DCRP security guards.
Great Bend residents David Brack, Sherri Brack and Chad Brown will split a $25,000 settlement with the Bracks' son, T.J. Janousek, who was injured during the brawl.
In separate lawsuits, the Bracks had sued the city and Maxwell on Janousek's behalf, alleging that the city had hired security guards for the Aug. 18, 2007, race without first investigating their backgrounds. The guards, Timothy Thomas and John J. Colbert, were listed as co-defendants in the suit against Maxwell.
The lawsuits were settled out of court on Thursday, May 7.
The plaintiffs' attorney, David Rebein, told the Globe on Wednesday that the case was less about money than about principles.
"What we wanted to do was to make sure that the public's safe at public events like the races," he said. "I think the city of Dodge City just made an error in the people that they hired and the way that they supervised them. And I'm confident that going forward, they'll do a much better job of supervising and screening their employees, and we can go back to enjoying the races."
Local attorney Brad Ralph, whose law firm represents the city, said: "We were pleased that everyone was able to reach an amicable resolution of this matter. It was obviously a very chaotic situation, and the city is confident that any similar situations will be avoided in the future."
Ralph noted that the settlement did not require any of the defendants to admit fault.
DCRP brawl
The brawl began with a scuffle between Colbert and Brown, whose car was involved in a wreck during the Aug. 18, 2007, races at DCRP.
Colbert and Thomas later entered the pit area and began shouting at Brown, his brother Scott and other people, according to the lawsuit filed against the city in December 2008.
The lawsuit accused Colbert and Thomas of assaulting David Brack during the brawl, and Thomas was accused of attacking Janousek.
The lawsuit alleged that Sherri Brack asked Maxwell to do something to stop the attack, but Maxwell said he could not control Colbert or Thomas. He also supposedly declined to call the police about the incident.
The lawsuit said that Colbert and Thomas were working for the city at the time, which made the city responsible for their actions.
Maxwell and Colbert denied the allegations in the lawsuit against them, which was filed in August 2008. Thomas did not file a response to the suit.
Maxwell, Colbert and Thomas were not listed in the 2009 Yellow Pages.
Reach Eric Swanson at (620) 408-9917 or e-mail him at eric.swanson@dodgeglobe.com.
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