Family of veteran who froze to death receives some justice

Family, state settle suit in '07 case of veteran who froze to death

By WALTER F. ROCHE JR.
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The state Department of Military and Veterans Affairs agreed to pay $250,000 to settle a negligence and wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the family of a retired Philadelphia police officer who froze to death after wandering from a state veterans home in Northeast Philadelphia.

Settlement papers released Friday show that most of the money will go to the estate of Harold C. Chapman Jr. and his two daughters.

Chapman, 75, who suffered from dementia and Alzheimer's disease, wandered away from the Delaware Valley Veterans Home, on Southampton Road, at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 31, 2007. Court records show that a surveillance camera recorded Chapman walking unnoticed past a security desk, wearing pajamas.

Ezra Wohlgelernter, the Chapman family lawyer, did not respond to a request for comment. Nor did officials of Military and Veterans Affairs.



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Family, state settle suit in '07 case of veteran who froze to death