SEAL BEACH ? Hairstylist Sandi Fannin was in the back of the Seal Beach salon she co-owned with her husband mixing hair dye for a customer when the shooting started.
In the next two minutes, she lost her husband, many of her closest friends and her business in the worst mass killing in Orange County history. Eight people were dead or dying.
A photograph of Randy and Sandy Fannin, center, surrounded by many of the staff members of Salon Meritage was taped to the front door of the salon shortly after the shooting.
BRUCE CHAMBERS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
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Nearly one year after the Oct. 12, 2011, midday massacre at the Salon Meritage near Pacific Coast Highway here, attorneys for Sandi Fannin filed a lawsuit accusing her business insurance company of operating in bad faith and inflicting emotional distress by delaying and then withholding payments.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Orange County Superior Court, contends that Fannin and her husband, Randy Fannin, had a commercial insurance policy with Employers Mutual Casualty Company that protected them from losses of property and income.
But the insurance company treated Sandi Fannin "rudely, arrogantly and as an adversary," rather than looking out for her best interests, according to the 11-page lawsuit filed by attorney Howard S. Shernoff. "Defendants treated Sandi with disdain instead of compassion," Shernoff said.
The insurance company told Fannin that 30 days was sufficient time to get Salon Meritage up and running after the killings, and eventually paid her less than half of the business interruption payments she is entitled to, Shernoff said.
Robert Closson, an attorney for the insurance company, said Wednesday he could not comment on pending litigation.
Salon Meritage has yet to re-open as the one-year anniversary of the shootings approaches. Sandi Fannin sold the business to friend and fellow hairstylist Irma Acosta, who plans to open a completely remodeled salon in the next few months. Fannin also plans to work once a week at the salon when it re-opens.
On Monday, Fannin said she is still in grief over the tragedy and found the insurance company representatives she dealt with for months were not compassionate, were hard to deal with and not responsive to her concerns.
"I lost everything that day," she said. "My husband, together with my friends ? they were more like family ? and my business were all gone in a matter of minutes. If people are in insurance, they need to be a little more understanding and show a little bit of compassion."
She said she felt the insurance company delayed payments when she most needed funds and eventually provided less than she was due. "It really wasn't fair," Fannin said.
Shernoff, in an interview Monday, said the insurance company had a fiduciary duty to protect his client. Even though the company knew she was going through an unimaginable tragedy, it "failed miserably" to act in her best interests, he said.
The lawsuit states EMC has paid Fannin about $30,000 in insurance payments, which ? according to Shernoff ? is about half of what she is entitled to.
The Fannins worked and co-managed Salon Meritage, and were also close friends with many of the hairstylists there.
Scott Dekraai, 42, of Huntington Beach, has been indicted by the Orange County grand jury on eight counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in the salon shootings. His trial, which could lead to the death penalty if he is convicted, is now slated for March. He has pleaded not guilty.
Authorities contend Dekraai walked into the salon about 1 p.m. on Oct. 12, 2011, and shot hairstylist Michelle Fournier, his ex-wife, after arguing with her earlier on the phone over child custody. He then shot Christy Lynn Wilson, 47, Fournier's friend and colleague, and Randy Fannin, 61, authorities said.
Witnesses said he then started shooting others at random, killing Victoria Ann Buzzo, 54; Lucia Bernice Kondas, 65; Laura Lee Webb Elody, 46; and Michele Fast, 47. Victim Harriet Stretz, 73, was shot and wounded. David Caouette, 64, was shot and killed while sitting in his parked car outside.
A Seal Beach patrol officer arrested Dekraai a few blocks from the crime scene.
"I know what I did," Dekraai told the officer, according to a search warrant affidavit.
Contact the writer: lwelborn@ocregister.com or 714-834-3784
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Source: http://www.ocregister.com/news/fannin-374032-insurance-salon.html
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