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HOUSTON — Flamboyant attorney John O’Quinn, who won billions in court judgments against makers of breast implants, pharmaceuticals and tobacco products, was killed Thursday morning in a one-vehicle wreck near downtown Houston, police reported.
It was drizzling at about 8 a.m. as O’Quinn, 68, drove a Chevrolet Suburban west on Allen Parkway, police said. He lost control of the SUV, which skidded across a median and oncoming lanes of traffic before slamming into a tree.O’Quinn and his personal assistant, identified by his law firm as Johnny Cutliff, were pronounced dead at the scene. The Houston Chronicle, citing police sources, said Cutliff, 56, was a Houston resident."Certainly the roads being slick could have had something to do with it," police Lt. L.J. Satterwhite said. "It’s a very preliminary investigation. It will take some time to figure out exactly what happened."The speed limit on the parkway is 40 mph. Witnesses told police that the SUV was traveling 50 to 60 mph, police spokesman Kese Smith said."The precise speed is not yet known," Smith said. "That will be determined after reconstruction of the accident and further investigation."Texas-size personaThe 6-foot-4 O’Quinn was known as a Texas-size lawyer with a Texas-size ego and wallet to match, lavishly spending on himself, philanthropic causes and Democratic politicians.O’Quinn’s name is on many of his beneficiaries’ buildings. His John M. O’Quinn Foundation donated tens of millions of dollars to the University of Houston — which he attended and where the football field bears his name — the Baylor College of Medicine and Houston’s Children’s Assessment Center, a private-public partnership with Harris County to help abused children."He worked tirelessly on behalf of this university and was one of its most generous financial contributors," said Renu Khator, president of the University of Houston and chancellor of the University of Houston System. "A good deal of this school’s success can be credited to John’s unflagging commitment to making UH a better institution."In 2006, he paid $1 million for a Harley-Davidson motorcycle signed by scores of celebrities. The money was donated to a fund for Hurricane Katrina survivors. The motorcycle was added to a collection that already featured the original Batmobile and Pope John Paul II’s 1975 Ford Escort GL, which O’Quinn bought for $700,000.Four years ago, he was the single-largest contributor in the Texas governor’s race, giving Democrat Chris Bell $1 million and lending him $1.7 million. Bell lost.In September 2006, O’Quinn celebrated his 65th birthday with a party that a local society columnist said ranked among the most legendary in a city that relishes conspicuous consumption. Ballrooms featured 56 vintage cars, multitiered crystal chandeliers, Monte Carlo-style casino tables, crystal wall sconces and three musical acts — including Don Henley of the Eagles.Took on corporationsO’Quinn made his money and his reputation taking on wealthy corporations. He was one of five lawyers who shared a $3.3 billion fee for helping Texas settle a lawsuit against the tobacco industry.His first big win came in 1986, when a jury found that Monsanto negligently exposed an employee to benzene at a Houston-area plant and ordered the company to pay $100 million. The award was later vacated and the case settled out of court, but O’Quinn’s fame was cemented.By 1992, he had begun a long and profitable run of silicone-breast-implant lawsuits with a $25 million verdict against Bristol-Myers Squibb. O’Quinn said he took in $3 billion from more than 3,000 breast-implant cases from 1992 to 2000. In 1995, Dow Corning, an implant maker, cited his lawsuits as reasons for its bankruptcy filing.
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