Sunday, February 28, 2010

IRS Bomber Update: Victim's Family to Sue Stack's Estate?

As if things need to get even more twisted.... God help us when lawyers get involved!

Last week, the adult daughter of Joe Stack from a former marriage made headlines by calling her father a "hero." Stack was the pilot of a plane, which deliberately crashed into Austin's Echelon building, killing IRS employee, Vernon Hunter, and injuring several others The building housed offices of the IRS and the crash killed both Stack and IRS employee Vernon Hunter. Said Bell, "His actions at the end were extremely horrific and I'm deeply sorry for my father." While admitting his actions were wrong, she added, "But if nobody comes out and speaks up on behalf of injustice, then nothing will ever be accomplished. But I do not agree with his last action with what he did. But I do agree about the government." She agreed her father was a hero and said, "Yes, because now maybe people will listen."

Understandably, Hunter's family was outraged. Ken Hunter told Fox News, "Are you telling me that an American citizen committing an attack of terrorism against the United States is heroic?" Hunter went on to say that his father, a Vietnam veteran, was the only hero.

Bell later recanted her statement saying, "We are mourning for Vernon Hunter."

Then it came out that the Hunter family was going to file a lawsuit against Stack's estate and named Stack's widow, Sheryl as part of that lawsuit as executrix. Said Hunter family's legal representative, Daniel Ross, "My client of course has stated that her heart goes out to Mrs. Stack and she considers Mrs. Stack as much a victim in this as anyone else," Ross said.

Right, except that now you want to take anything, she has left. I have total sympathy for the Hunter family, but going after his widow, who is also a victim in this, is just wrong.

Ross claimed money was not the motivating factor, but then said it was his job to discover if there was anything left in the Stack estate such as insurance policies. He also wanted to question Stack and speculated that, had she talked to authorities that night, the attack might have been prevented. Mrs. Stack and her daughter had allegedly stayed at a hotel the night Joe Stack set fire to their house.

Sheryl is a single mother, who's homeless after her husband flipped out and burned down their house before crashing his plane filled with fuel into a building. She's probably going to have to deal with the IRS if over any joint or business bank accounts over any non-payment of Stack's taxes, which she may not have even known about previously. And now you want to pile on? For all the talk of 'she's a victim, too' she's not exactly being treated like one.

A few days later, the attorney reported they are removing Sheryl Stack from the lawsuit as they have reached an agreement regarding keeping Hunter's autopsy private. It has not been said, however, that they are dropping the lawsuit. No doubt, lawyers have had enough time to find Sheryl Stack's pockets are not deep enough. The question is, who are they going to sue now? The IRS? The airplane manufacturer? The Echelon building's engineers?

But it's not about the money....

Funeral services were held for Hunter Friday.

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