Galveston Bay Personal Injury Lawyer - Tractor-Trailer Accidents

$82 Million Awarded in Ford Rollover Lawsuit

Scott Kappes — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 13:09:48 GMT

Yesterday a California appeals court reinstated an $82.6 million award to a woman who was left a paraplegic after a rollover accident in her Ford Explorer. Benetta Buell-Wilson's spine was crushed when the vehicle rolled over and the roof collapsed due to a defect that Ford was allegedly aware of and failed to remedy or warn consumers about. At the original trial a jury awarded Buell-Wilson and her husband $246 million in punitive damages alone, but the amount was reduced by the trail judge to $75 million, and reduced again on appeal to $55 million.

The U.S. Supreme Court had vacated the San Diego court's previous judgment and ordered it to reconsider the award in light of a high court ruling that juries cannot use punitive damages to punish defendants for harm caused to third parties.
The high court reiterated, however, that juries may consider harm to third parties in determining the reprehensibility of a defendant's conduct, a factor in damages calculations.

The appeals court rejected a bid from Ford for a new trail and concluded that original decision should be upheld. A Ford spokeswoman said the company was disappointed with the decision and the plans to appeal the verdict.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Scott Kappes

Texas Jury Awards $6.5 Million in Rollover Lawsuit

Scott Kappes — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:32:21 GMT

In August of 2004 Ruben Zamora, 41, was severely injured when he was involved in a rollover accident in his 1993 Ford Explorer. Zamora lost control of the vehicle when the tread of one of the back tires separated causing the tail end of the SUV to swing sideways and resulted in the rollover. Zamora was ejected from the vehicle during the rollover. The previously disabled oilfield worker suffered severe brain damage will require care assistance for the rest of his life.

A state court jury in Cotulla, Texas, found the Explorer defective and awarded $10 million on Feb. 1. The jury found that Zamora was 35 percent responsible for the accident, leaving a verdict of $6.5 million against Ford, Neumann said.

Once the overwhelming leader in SUV sales the Ford Explorer was surpassed last year by Honda's CRV and is currently the second most commonly purchased SUV. Sales dropped 23 percent from 2006 to 2007.

A Ford spokesperson, Marcey Evans, said that the company would appeal the verdict alleging that Zamora was not properly belted in when the crash occurred.

"It is unfair to blame Ford for this tragic accident or for Mr. Zamora's injuries, which were caused by not being belted properly while losing control of his vehicle,'' Evans said. ``We think the verdict isn't supported by the evidence."

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Scott Kappes

Two Dead after Head-On Collision with Garbage Truck

Christina Cole — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 02:57:04 GMT

After a truck accident early this morning involving a garbage truck and a car - two people are dead and Texas 146, in Liberty County, was closed.

Investigation reports indicate the car may have had a tire malfunction that caused the car to swerve and hit a Waste Management garbage truck head-on.

The driver of the garbage truck was hospitalized the two people in the car were killed, according to Dayton Police.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole