A Chicago woman who is currently serving a 58-year prison sentence for the murder and dismemberment of her landlord will be awarded nearly $3 million in damages.
Sandra Kolalou, who is known as Sandra White following a change in marital status, was injured after being struck by a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) bus in March 2018 while walking on a crosswalk.
In 2019, she filed a lawsuit against the CTA and the bus driver, Tyrone Bynum, claiming she had suffered orthopedic and neurological injuries, including lower back and leg pain, according to court records obtained by WBEZ.
Bynum and the CTA admitted negligence, and jurors were asked to determine damages.
By the time the civil trial started in 2023, Kolalou had been charged and jailed for the murder of her landlord, 69-year-old Frances Walker.
According to CBS Chicago, prosecutors said Kolalou killed Walker in October 2022 after being served an eviction notice.
Prosecutors said Kolalou pulled a knife on a tow truck driver and demanded he drive her to Chicago’s lakefront, where the driver saw her dump a heavy black garbage bag into a garbage bin.
Pooled blood and blood-soaked rags were found inside the garbage bin at the lakefront, and Walker’s severed head, arms, and legs were found in a freezer at the home Kolalou rented from the 69-year-old.
After Kolalou was jailed on charges connected to Walker’s death, a judge ruled that her incarceration was not relevant to the civil case against the CTA and allowed her to testify via video from jail in civilian clothing so as not to bias the jury.
In Feb. 2023, a jury awarded Kolalou $3 million in damages, including compensation for medical care and loss of a normal life. The CTA argued that White’s incarceration made future medical treatment unlikely and a normal life improbable.
Later that year, a judge ordered a retrial after learning that Kolalou had not disclosed her social media activity.
Kolalou testified at the first trial that she experienced fluctuating pain levels and limitations of normal life activities. However, attorneys for the CTA argued that the travel and activities she shared online were inconsistent with her testimony.
Kolalou was awarded a $2.8 million at her new trial with damages for future medical care and future loss of normal life.
The new award was granted before Kolalou was convicted of her landlord’s murder in April 2024. She was found guilty of first-degree murder, dismembering a body, concealing a homicidal death, and aggravated identity theft.
In July 2024, a judge sentenced her to 58 years in prison.
The CTA fought the civil ruling, motioned for a new trial and appealed the decision, arguing that a judge erred by allowing the civil case to move forward when Kolalou’s murder case was still pending.
The transit authority’s motion and appeal were denied.
An appellate court recently upheld the $2.8 million award to Kolalou, ruling that excluding evidence in the unrelated criminal case was within the trial court’s discretion as it was more likely to prejudice jurors than help determine damages and the full extent of the CTA’s liability.
“But our decision should not be read as an endorsement of [Kolalou’s] conduct,” the appellate court wrote. “The troubling result here is compelled by the law, and nothing in the opinion excuses or minimizes the nature of [Kolalou’s] actions.”
