Maine judge awards $1 million to widower in wrongful death case

BELFAST, Maine – A judge in Waldo County has issued a final judgment of $1 million against Todd Gilday, who shot and killed a Belfast woman two years ago.

Gilday shot Lynn Arsenault, 55, and her son Mathew Day, 22, on Aug. 28, 2013, following a dispute between the men. Arsenault died and Day suffered serious injuries. Gilday pleaded guilty and is serving a 50-year prison sentence.

Berman & Simmons filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of Arsenault’s husband, Donald Arsenault Jr. of Garland. The lawsuit was heard in Waldo County Superior Court.

Berman & Simmons won summary judgment in the case this summer, and on Oct. 22, Justice Robert Murray issued a final judgment against Gilday in the amount of $1 million. The compensation is for loss of companionship, as well as the conscious pain and suffering Arsenault endured before her death.

“The loss of Lynn Arsenault has been devastating to her husband, other family members, and her community,” a Berman & Simmons representative said. “No one should have to endure what they have gone through. We’re pleased that justice has now been served in Maine’s civil court system, just as it was served in the criminal system.”

The Bangor Daily News covered this story in an article on Nov. 24, 2015. Click here to read the story by BDN staff writer Abigail Curtis.

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