Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

Wrongful death suit filed in death of UMass student

Hannah Frilot during her time at UMass. (Michelle Mandeau)
Hannah Frilot during her time at UMass. (Michelle Mandeau)

The family of Hannah Frilot, the University of Massachusetts student who died after being hit by a car along North East Street in Amherst last July, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver this week.

Cynthia May, 64, of Orleans, hit Frilot, a 20-year-old Arizona native who was a rising senior at UMass, walking her bike northbound on the right side of the road just after 11 p.m. on July 31. Paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene.

The suit, filed by Frilot’s parents, claims that May violated several laws when she hit their daughter and also that her insurance company, Safety Insurance Co., broke state laws when it denied insurance claims on the grounds that it had no liability, according to The Daily Hampshire Gazette.

The Gazette said the family is seeking to “cover their court costs and the loss of Hannah Frilot’s potential future earnings as well as compensatory and punitive damages for allegedly causing Hannah Frilot’s death, pain and suffering and emotional distress.”

No trial date has been set yet for the suit, which was filed on Monday.

May has also plead not guilty to negligent motor vehicle homicide, a misdemeanor that can be punishable by up to two-and-a-half years in prison with an accompanying 15-year loss of license.

A pretrial hearing for the criminal case will be held on July 15 in Hampshire Superior Court.

Anthony Rentsch can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @Anthony_Rentsch.

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