Most of the pending lawsuits stemming from a Metrolink train crash at the Glendale-Los Angeles border nearly five years ago have settled for $30 million, an attorney for many of the plaintiffs said today. Among the resolved cases was a wrongful death suit filed against Metrolink on behalf of the widow of Los Angeles County sheriff's Deputy James Tutino, who was killed in the Jan. 26, 2005, derailment, lawyer Jerome Ringler said. 

"She's extremely pleased with the settlement," Ringler said of Rita Kay Tutino. Her husband was a 23-year law enforcement veteran who occasionally used the rail to get to work at the Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles. The 47-year-old Simi Valley resident was one of 11 Metrolink riders to die in the crash, which left more than 180 others injured. At the time, it was the deadliest crash on a U.S. railroad since 1999, and in the history of Metrolink, which began service in 1992. 

The former Compton resident who caused the derailment was sentenced in August 2008 to 11 consecutive life prison terms. Juan Manuel Alvarez testified that he meant to commit suicide by parking his green Jeep on the tracks south of Chevy Chase Drive in Glendale about 6 a.m., but changed his mind and couldn't get the SUV off the tracks so abandoned the vehicle. 

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http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/news/local/Metrolink_Lawsuit_Settlement_Reached_20091014