Stuntman John Bernecker’s death on the set of The Walking Dead was “entirely preventable,” as the production failed to follow AMC’s own safety system, his family’s attorney said in the closing argument of a civil trial in Georgia.
Jeff Harris described what he characterized as a “slow train ride to the inevitable death of John Bernecker,” telling a jury that there was “just a failure to plan for anything other than complete success.”
In talking about potential damages, Harris also cited expert testimony that Bernecker would have made about $10 million over the course of his life. But he indicated that they would “come back and ask for damages for the full value of John’s life,” citing Bernecker’s potential for getting married and having a family.
Bernecker died in July 2017, two days after suffering massive head injuries from crashing from a high balcony to a concrete floor. He had been rehearsing a fight scene with then-TWD regular Austin Amelio on the Georgia set of Season 8 of AMC’s flagship series. An airbag had been placed below him, but he missed it, striking his head on the ground.
Harris said that as Bernecker performed the stunt, he could have been thrown off when Amelio touched him with one of the props, causing him to fall outside the catcher system.
“There are a zillion different ways that this stunt could have been thrown off, but there just wasn’t any planning for it,” Harris said.
Harris replayed the video of the stunt, arguing that the production company failed “to use a couple hundred bucks of cardboard, and their defense is it’s his fault for not asking for more.”
Bernecker’s mother, Susan, sued AMC, production company Stalwart Film and other defendants in January, 2018.
Harris also argued that Bernecker was an independent contractor, and not an employee of the production company, pointing out that he was paid via 1099 and was set to work for other productions, like those of Marvel, after his Walking Dead work.
Under Georgia law, if Stalwart is recognized as the employer and not AMC, and Bernecker is not labeled an independent contractor, the case becomes a matter for the state’s worker compensation agencies.
David Dial, the attorney for the defendants, will deliver closing arguments later on Tuesday morning.