Relatives of the victims who traveled with Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera from Monterrey to Toluca, Mexico the day she died have decided to sue the company that owned the plane as well as the artist’s enterprises.
On Thursday, Kiesel-Larson law firm told media the lawsuit is official. Family members of the publicist Arturo Rivera, the makeup artist Jacobo Yebale, attorney Mario Macías Pachecho and stylist Jorge "Gigi" Armando Sanchez, came together to sue, seeking to clarify what happened on the fateful morning of December 9, 2012 and receive compensation from those responsible for the accident.
The claim has been placed against several companies including Starwood Management LLC; Rodatz Financial Group, Inc.; McOco, Inc. and Jenni Rivera Enterprises.
"Because all of them could possibly be responsible and we know that it wasn't Arturo and Jacob, or counselor Macías; they weren't in charge of choosing that plane," Vance Owen, the plaintiff's counsel, told HuffPost Voces. "Now we're looking into the possibility that someone within Jenni Rivera's company had something to do with choosing to rent that plane that was a piece of junk."
Although the lawsuit has been estimated to worth millions, an exact sum requested by the victims' families has yet to be reported. However, Owen has assured it will depend on what comes up from the investigation.
"It's too soon to say, this is not just about money, but to seek answers and know what happened," he added.
Owen also said he hasn't spoken with the Rivera family on the matter or has been contacted by them to discuss the topic.
The civil lawsuit filed in the Los Angeles court calls for a "compensation for damages" from everyone involved with the hiring and renting of the plane.
"I'm not going to profit from this situation, I'm not going to hurt [Jenni Rivera’s] family, and her children, this is only part of the investigation. I am not seeking to damage them because they are going through the same mourning that I am going through," said Cynthia Rivera, sister of publicist Arturo Rivera who is also part of the group of plaintiffs to Univision talk show “El Gordo y La Flaca.”
Before You Go
