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.
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.
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.
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.
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