Father sues wedding venue over daughter’s death

PORTLAND — A man whose daughter died after she jumped or fell from a moving car is suing an Oregon wedding venue for overserving alcohol to the woman’s mother, who was driving at the time of the incident, according to a lawsuit filed last week.

Anton “Tony” Cordie filed a lawsuit seeking nearly $1 million from Yamhill County-based Heiser Farms Events LLC, which he accused of negligence in the hours before his daughter, Meighan Cordie, fell to her death, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.

Jennifer Weathers, Meighan Cordie’s mother who changed her name to Jennifer Jaeger after the incident, was “visibly intoxicated” at the Aug. 18, 2018, event, according to the lawsuit.

Jaeger, Cordie and Cordie’s young daughter left the venue. The next day, Jaeger called a non-emergency dispatcher to report that she was “kind of worried” about Cordie.

Cordie’s body was found down an embankment Aug. 23, 2018, in Dayton. An autopsy showed she suffered two broken or severed vertebrae and died instantly upon hitting the roadway.

Police and prosecutors originally investigated whether Jaeger should be charged with a homicide but Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry said there was insufficient evidence. The state medical examiner’s office ruled Cordie’s death accidental. Jaeger completed a five-night sentence for driving under the influence of intoxicants on the night her daughter died.

In October, Tony Cordie filed a $500,000 lawsuit against Jaeger.

In last week’s lawsuit, he accused the venue of negligence.

The venue did not immediately respond to a request for comment.