Widow of Slain Officer Ordered to Pay

Greg Owen

Attorney

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Elizabeth Bernoskie's husband, a police officer, was gunned down in a robbery gone wrong in 1958. No charges were filed until 41 years later after the suspect's sister reveled that her brother and her cousin had talked about committing the murder.

However, after the prime suspect, Zarinsky, was acquitted in the criminal trial. The decedent's wife filed a wrongful-death civil suit wherein the jury awarded $9.5 million of which she received Zarinsky's $150,000 mutual fund as a down payment.

On Thursday, the state appeals court ruled that the wrongful-death suit should never have been allowed due to the fact that he was acquitted of the murder charges. "While Zarinsky's lawyer called the ruling satisfactory, Bernoskie's attorney said it was the "end of the line" for victim's family." Stay tuned to see if the family will challenge the decision in the Superior Court.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Wrongful Death.