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County sues widow, children of fallen Texas deputy

Since his death, the county has not tried to recover reimbursement for his medical expenses, until now

By Police1 Staff

FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — Fort Bend County plans to sue the widow and children of an officer who died five years ago in the line of duty, ABC 13 reported.

Deputy J.D. Norsworthy was critically injured on Dec. 27, 2010 after swerving to avoid traffic on the way to help another officer. He hit a tree and flipped his patrol vehicle. He died several days later.

Since his death, the county has not tried to recover reimbursement for his medical expenses. Now that the family has settled with the party ruled liable for the wreck, the county has sued them.

“Why would you make it even worse? Theres no words for it. It’s just wrong,” J.D.’s daughter, Kaitlyn Norsworthy, told the news site.

According to the suit, the county claims it has been deprived and is “entitled to the first monies paid by any third party” totalling upwards of $300,000.

“We’re obligated to file that suit to make reasonable recovery,” Fort Bend County Judge Bob Hebert told the news site. “It puts us in an unusual predicament but we have to look to the taxpayers first and protect their money if at all possible.”

The Norsworthy family were stunned and called the suit hypocritical.

“We don’t understand why it is coming to this. Why have we reached this point, I think it’s disrespectful,” she said. “It’s a slap in the face.”

The attorney representing the family said the statute of limitations for the county to be able to file a suit expired two years ago.

The county is self-insured.

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