Overview
- In a Dec. 31 ruling, the First District Appellate Court affirmed a $2.8 million jury verdict against the CTA for injuries Kolalou suffered when a bus struck her in 2018.
- The court said the CTA never sought a formal stay and offered no admissible proof that incarceration would negate future damages, so jurors were not told she was jailed.
- Trial judges excluded references to her criminal charges and allowed her to testify by video in civilian clothing, decisions the appellate panel said fell within their discretion.
- An initial 2023 damages verdict of about $3 million was retried after undisclosed, reactivated Facebook content surfaced, and a second jury awarded $2.8 million.
- Coverage noted Illinois repealed its “pay-to-stay” law in 2019, meaning the state cannot sue to recover Kolalou’s prison costs even as she serves a 58-year sentence.