February 4, 2019
By:
In a unanimous decision by the three-judge panel, the Court of Appeals of Tennessee at Nashville has reportedly overturned a DeKalb County Circuit Court ruling by Judge Jonathan Young on the civil case of Sherry Smith vs Hannah Nicole Palmer regarding the death of Lauren Taylor Agee. It was the opinion of the Appellate Court that Judge Young did not rule properly and the decision has been reversed.
Sherry Smith is the mother of Lauren Taylor Agee, whose body was discovered in Center Hill Lake on July 26th, 2015. Lauren had been camping with several friends at the time of her death. Ms. Smith alleges that those friends, in some manner, caused her daughter’s death and conspired to cover it up.
The summation of the Appeals Court decision was a reversal of the grant of Summary Judgment and the reversal of the ruling on the striking of evidence presented by the plaintiff including testimony from former police officers, current police officers, private detectives, a forensic specialist as well as Ms. Smith herself. The case now will continue, as previously scheduled, with a jury trial.
Smith filed a $10 million dollar wrongful death lawsuit in DeKalb County Circuit Court in July 2016 against several individuals claiming that her daughter, was killed through the intentional, negligent, or reckless acts of the defendants.
Agee’s body was found on Sunday afternoon, July 26 2015 by fishermen on Center Hill Lake near Still Point Boat Ramp across from Pates Ford Marina.
According to reports at the time, Agee had been enjoying an outing with friends known as “Wakefest” over that weekend and was camping near the edge of a steep cliff overlooking the lake prior to the tragedy.
Smith is seeking a judgment against the defendants for compensatory damages in the amount of $10 million; a judgment for punitive damages in an amount to be determined by a jury trial; and costs and such other further relief that the Court deems just and proper.