One year after University of Oklahoma rugby player Jozsef Pal was found unconscious near Campus Corner and later died at a hospital, his family has filed a sweeping civil lawsuit in Cleveland County. The complaint targets several individuals and businesses and accuses them of negligence, overserving alcohol and failing to get him help. Relatives say this case is their last shot at accountability after a criminal investigation wrapped up without any charges.
What the Lawsuit Says
The petition lays out assault and battery and negligence claims against the man accused of punching Pal, and it identifies two other men who, according to the suit, failed to call for medical assistance. It also faults nearby bars for allegedly continuing to serve Pal even though he was visibly intoxicated.
On top of that, the lawsuit names the company that owned the vehicle the men were driving and the city of Norman, criticizing how officials handled the scene that night. Chloe Glass, an attorney for the Pal family, said the bars had “overserved” Pal and left him vulnerable. As of Tuesday, the city had not commented, and its legal team had not yet been served, according to KOCO.
Video and Medical Examiner’s Finding
Police body camera footage obtained by a local TV station captures one man at the scene saying, “Nah, dude. let’s get it, and I overreacted and I hit him,” during a confrontation outside Campus Corner.
Officers later found Pal unconscious near 305 E Boyd St, and he was rushed to the hospital. Surgeons kept him on life support for five days before removing it when his brain injuries were deemed unsurvivable. The medical examiner ultimately ruled his death a homicide, according to reporting by 2 News Oklahoma.
DA Review and Criminal Case Status
The Cleveland County District Attorney’s Office has said that, despite the homicide ruling, the available evidence did not show conduct that rose to criminal liability. Prosecutors closed the criminal investigation without filing charges.
Officials have said they plan to meet with the Pal family to go over the case but have declined to publicly explain their charging decisions in detail, according to KOCO.
What a Civil Case Could Do
Civil cases operate under a different standard than criminal prosecutions. Instead of proving guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt,” Pal’s family only has to show that the defendants are more likely than not responsible, a threshold known as a preponderance of the evidence.
If a court finds negligence or other wrongdoing, the family could be awarded monetary damages or other relief against the bars and additional defendants named in the lawsuit. For more on how those burdens of proof work, see Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institute.
Family’s Demand for Accountability
Pal’s mother has said the family is still searching for answers and responsibility in their son’s death, and she hopes the civil case will surface what the criminal process did not.
“We still want some accountability. We want some justice,” she told local reporters. The family says it is prepared to keep litigating until it gets those answers, according to 2 News Oklahoma. The city of Norman had not commented on the pending lawsuit at the time of those reports.
