Walmart says actor and comedian Tracy Morgan and his companions in the fatal car crash in June were not wearing seat belts, according to TMZ.
The retail chain makes this claim in a filing that responds to a lawsuit filed in July by lawyers representing the Morgan, who suffered broken ribs, a broken nose and a broken leg as a result of the crash.
His longtime friend, comedian James McNair, died while two other passengers, Ardley Fuqua and Jeffrey Millea, were injured.
According to police investigation, Walmart employee Kevin Roper crashed the tractor-trailer he was driving into the rear of the limousine bus which the actor and his companions were in. In June, Roper pleaded not guilty to criminal charges, including vehicular homicide and assault by auto, says Billboard.
Morgan's lawsuit accuses that Walmart was negligent and careless in operating the vehicle and that it should have been aware that Roper had been awake for more than 24 hours when the accident happened.
The lawsuit claims Walmart did not comply with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Regulations, which are intended to avoid the dangers brought about by driver fatigue. The complaint is seeking a jury trial and punitive and compensatory damages.
In Walmart's filing, the company claims that the injuries "were caused, in whole or in part, by plaintiffs' failure to properly wear an appropriate available seat belt restraint device." It says that the plaintiffs "acted unreasonably and in disregard of plaintiffs' own best interests" by not wearing seat belts.
Walmart also says that the neither the company nor any of its employees caused the actor's and the other plaintiffs' damages. Rather, the injuries and the death "may have been caused by third parties over whom Walmart had no control," it claims.
Morgan and the other plaintiffs are expected to file a written statement indicating the amount of damages specified in the first complaint, according to CNN.