Gonzalez v. New York City Housing Authority

Gonzalez and Freire (plaintiffs), independent adult grandchildren, sued the Housing Authority (defendant) after an assailant tortured and murdered their 76-year-old grandmother in her apartment building; despite living independently, the grandchildren visited her regularly, relied on her for meals and help coping with their mentally ill mother, and one grandchild had stayed with her during a marital crisis and expected her help with future childcare. The jury awarded $1,250,000 for wrongful death and $1,000,000 for conscious pain and suffering, later reduced by the trial court to $100,000 and $350,000 respectively; the Housing Authority appealed, arguing wrongful-death damages require pecuniary loss that independent adults couldn't show, and that the evidence didn't support conscious pain and suffering.