Norman and Genevieve Broussard today won a $2.5 million punitive damages verdict in their federal lawsuit against State Farm Fire & Casualty, The Washington Post reports.  State Farm refused to pay under the Broussards’ homeowner policy for damage from Hurricane Katrina, claiming that rising water instead of wind destroyed the couple’s domicile in South Mississippi.  The judge granted judgment as a matter of law for the Broussards on State Farm’s liability before submitting the punitive damages question to the jury.

State Farm meanwhile continues negotiations to settle hundreds of other homeowner claims. 

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