HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The family of a man who was killed on Labor Day weekend last year in a two-vessel crash on Lake Hamilton is suing the estate of the driver who was allegedly intoxicated when he caused the collision.
The mother of 36-year-old Andrew Blake Eason is suing the trust company managing the estate of Justin William Hall on behalf of herself and her son’s beneficiaries, including his two minor sons, ages 11 and 13, according to a complaint filed Wednesday in Garland County circuit court. Also named as a plaintiff in the lawsuit is Richard Paul Fox, a friend of Andrew Eason’s who was next to him in passenger seating on the boat when it was struck.
Hall was allegedly driving on the “wrong side of the lake, into the lane of oncoming traffic,” with a blood alcohol level of .164%. Hall’s head was allegedly turned away from the direction he was travelling, according to the lawsuit.
Hall was driving a 2015 Yamaha SX210 jet boat when he “struck an eastbound family bowrider bow to bow, rode over its port rail, and came through its forward seating” on Aug. 31, 2025.
Eason and Hall both died in the crash. Fox was injured.
“The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission investigated, found Hall’s intoxication the primary cause and his violation of the rules of navigation and inattention contributing causes, and charged the navigation violation to Hall’s vessel alone,” the complaint said. “The vessels closed on reciprocal, or nearly reciprocal, courses, each on plane. Hall did not slow, did not sound a signal, did not alter course to starboard, and took no action of any kind to avoid [the other boat].”
Hall had used social media to organize a gathering of boats that evening at Skinny Dip Cove which he was reportedly leaving when the crash occurred, according to the lawsuit.
Andrew Eason died of blunt force trauma and was not ejected from the boat, according to the complaint. Fox suffered injuries to his legs and has been treated for post traumatic stress caused by the collision and watching “a close friend die beside him.”
In addition to his minor sons, Hall’s beneficiaries include his mother, father and brother. They are suing Community First Trust Co. in its capacity as the representative of Hall’s estate.
The lawsuit alleges that Hall was negligent for operating his boat with a blood alcohol level that was double the legal limit and for driving on the wrong side of the lake.
It further faults Hall for failing to keep a proper lookout and for traveling at “a speed unsafe for the darkness and the traffic on the lake, at which he could not take proper and effective action to avoid a collision.”
“Hall’s conduct violated the Arkansas boating safety laws and the inland navigation rules adopted under them, and each such violation is evidence of his negligence,” the complaint said. “Andrew bore no fault for the collision or for his death.”
The lawsuit is seeking survival benefits for Eason’s children, as well as damages for the loss of their father and past and future mental anguish. Damages are also being sought for the past and future mental anguish of Eason’s other family members.
Fox is seeking compensation for medical expenses, including for treatment of PTSD, as well as damages for past and future mental anguish “including the anguish of witnessing at close range the violent death of a close friend.”
The Eason family and Fox are represented by Kyle P. Tate of TateCollins Attorneys. Counsel information for the trust company was not available Wednesday.
The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Lynn Williams.
Get the biggest Arkansas stories in your inbox
Breaking news, arrests and court updates from across the state. Free.
Confirmation email required. Powered by Mailchimp.
