This crumpled mess was all that was left of the car Eka was travelling in, when it was hit by a trailer moving on the opposite side of the road. The car overturned and fell off the side of the road. The other driver, thinking that everyone in it was dead, fled the scene. Eka was a former resident at Mkurnali‘s homeless shelter in Tbilisi, Georgia. Without Mkurnali’s legal help, she would never have won the compensation she so desperately needed to pay for her healthcare after the accident.
This accident took place about a year ago. The local police found out that the trailer’s driver was a representative of a Turkish company. Without any investigation, they decided that both parties were at fault. The site inspection was the only evidence gathered and, because of bad weather, its findings were not completely reliable. The investigation was not objective, because the police did not want to bring a case against a Turkish citizen. It was also discovered that the driver had left the country.
As soon as Mkurnali heard Eka’s story, they immediately got their lawyer involved. Any delay would have endangered her, since she needed surgery urgently. Because both parties were deemed to be at fault, the insurance only paid out for one of the operations that Eka needed.
Eka had moved to a different region to find work and, unfortunately, Mkurnal is not well known there. They were refused any additional investigations by the local authorities and had to apply to the General Prosecutor’s Office to get a technical examination of the car and of the traces left by the accident. The results of these investigations showed that the trailer driver was soley at fault for the accident.
Mkurnali’s lawyer then worked with the border police to identify the driver and the company. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs helped them to track down the company.
Since the court case would last for months, they turned to several companies for help. Fortunately, the insurance company has covered the cost of Eka’s four operations and her treatment. The Turkish company paid for three months of rehabilitation. Inga returned from Turkey almost a year after the accident. She continues her slow recovery.
St Gregory’s Foundation is pleased to be able to support Mkurnali’s vital legal service, which brings justice for people whose poverty would otherwise make them powerless.
