Jenni Rivera News 2013: Wrongful Death Lawsuit Will Be Held In California And Not Mexico

Will Jenni Rivera ever be at peace? Even in death the celebrated Latin singer makes her way into the headlines. Most recently, the relatives of Jenni Rivera and the other passengers killed in the plane crash last year have filed a wrongful death lawsuit. On Thursday a judge ruled that the wrongful death lawsuit will be held in Los Angeles, California as opposed to Mexico. Superior Court Judge Holly Kendig ruled against the operators of the fallen plane, Starwood Management Inc., after filing a motion for the case to be dismissed in California and moved to Mexico.

The plaintiffs in the case are seeking retribution for the iconic Mexican-American singer, and six other people were killed in the Dec. 9 crash in northern Mexico. Of the six other passengers on board on the plane, relatives of three of the victims are taking legal action. Relatives of Rivera's publicist, one of her lawyers, her makeup artist and a hairstylist sued Starwood and the Jenni Rivera's company in January.

Starwood lawyer, Mark Velasquez, filed the motion that Judge Kendig rejected arguing, that the case should be heard in Mexico considering the close proximity to the crash site. Velasquez also stated that many of the plane's records Mexico and investigators were working on-site to determine why the company's Learjet 25 crash landed from an altitude of more than 28,000 feet. According to the Associated Press, Paul Kiesel, an attorney for one of the plaintiffs stated that the Learjet was registered in the U.S. and Starwood is incorporated in Nevada. He also claimed that, "investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were having the plane's wreckage examined in the U.S. and assisting Mexican authorities."

Despite, the rejected motion to have the lawsuit heard in California, Kendig's ruling did not address the facts of the case, which will be detailed in later motions. "We're at the beginning, not the end, of this case," Kendig said.

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