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The complaint was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court by two
stepchildren of Kimberly Howe, who died in the Feb. 7 collision
on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu that sheriff's deputies said
had left five other people injured.
The lawsuit claims Jenner was driving his Cadillac Escalade,
towing a trailer with an off-road vehicle, when he struck Howe's
car from the rear, propelling her automobile into oncoming
traffic, and she collided head-on with another vehicle.
According to the suit, Jenner "violated the rules of the road"
and was "negligent, careless and reckless" in causing the wreck,
though the six-page complaint did not specify how Jenner was
alleged to have been at fault. By contrast, Howe was "acting
with due caution, attention and care" and did not contribute to
the crash, the suit said.
Jenner's publicist, Alan Nierob, declined comment on the case.
The wrongful death claim seeks unspecified damages for the
personal loss of Howe and her financial support to her
stepdaughter, Dana Redmond, and stepson William Howe.
Kimberly Howe's obituary said she and her deceased husband of 32
years ran a national health food business, and that she
previously played bit parts in several Elvis Presley movies.
The suit came one week after Jenner declared in a nationally
televised interview that he identifies as a woman, becoming the
most high-profile American to come out as transgender. Nierob,
however, has said Jenner still prefers to be referred to with
male pronouns.
Jenner, 65, rose to fame with a record-breaking Olympic gold
medal victory in the decathalon in the 1976 Summer Games in
Montreal that earned him the unofficial title of "World's
Greatest Athlete."
Known to younger generations as the patriarch of reality TV's
Kardashian clan, Jenner appeared on ABC's "20/20" last Friday to
put to rest months of speculation that he was transitioning to
life as a woman.
The interview was conducted days before the Malibu crash. ABC's
Diane Sawyer said during the broadcast that Jenner was unable to
comment on the wreck but told ABC of the tragedy, "I was
devastated."
Jenner escaped serious injury in the crash, having declined
medical treatment at the scene, authorities said.
The accident remains under investigation by police.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Sandra
Maler)
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