Because wrongful death civil cases and wrongful death criminal cases are two separate types of legal action—involving different court systems—it is entirely possible to win a wrongful death lawsuit even if the defendant was not convicted of any charges.
The stakes are high in a criminal case, and a higher standard must be met when establishing proof that an individual was responsible for another's death.
Civil cases, on the other hand, have a much lower threshold when it comes to the burden of proof. Because of this, it is possible for an individual to be found not guilty of an individual's death but be found guilty in a civil case through a wrongful death lawsuit.
One of the most iconic examples of this is the case of former football player Orenthal James Simpson. During his criminal court trial, he was found not guilty of the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. However, Simpson was found guilty in a civil court following a wrongful death lawsuit against him.