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Victim’s daughter files suit against REACH
By Justin Goble
More than six months after the murder of Bonnie Woodring brought national attention to Jackson County, representatives of her estate have filed a wrongful death suit against REACH.
Papers on file with the Jackson County Clerk of Court indicate Charlotte attorney Brett Dessler, acting on behalf of Woodring’s daughter Michelle Stojanik, has alleged that negligence on the part of REACH caused Woodring’s death. The suit seeks damages in excess of $75,000 to cover expenses for care, funeral costs, “pain and suffering” and Woodring’s net income.
According to the complaint, Dessler claims that REACH officials failed to “provide adequate security, lighting and/or alarms for the premises and failed to keep the shelter’s location hidden from forseeably dangerous men.”
Had these safety concerns been addressed, Woodring would not have been murdered, the document says.
The lawsuit also indicates that REACH officials knew about criminal activity near the area yet failed to notify those staying at the shelter.
Though aware of the dangers facing shelter residents, REACH directors failed to take “any reasonable precautions” to protect them, the document states.
Sylva attorney and REACH Board President David Moore said the organization “disagreed with the assertions laid out in the lawsuit,” but had no other comment on the matter since it was a pending legal proceeding.
Woodring was shot and killed in September by her estranged husband, John “Woody” Woodring, while staying at the REACH domestic violence shelter in Sylva.
Authorities said Woody Woodring forced his way into the REACH shelter, and shot Bonnie Woodring with a shotgun. Bonnie Woodring had been staying at the shelter for several days following the issuance of a domestic violence protective order against Woody Woodring.
At the time of the shooting, Woody Woodring had outstanding warrants for domestic abuse. One of those stemmed from an attempted Sept. 14 strangulation of Bonnie Wood-ring. That incident occurred when she returned to her home to pick up some clothes one day after she left her husband and moved into the REACH shelter.
The six-week manhunt for Woody Woodring ended in early November when his body was found on a Graham County houseboat docked on Lake Fontana. Authorities said a gun and a suicide note were found beside his body.
The case drew national media attention and was featured on television shows including “America’s Most Wanted” and “Larry King Live.”
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