The Nevada Supreme Court has upheld a $32.2 million judgment in Clark County against Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company related to a single-car accident in 2004 that killed three people and injured seven.

The court rejected the claim of Goodyear that the amount awarded by the jury was excessive.

The majority decision, written by Justice Mark Gibbons, said there was sufficient evidence to justify the amount because of the loss of life and serious injuries and it does “not shock our judicial conscience.”

The car’s occupants were traveling from Nevada to Kansas when a tire blew out and the vehicle overturned near Moab, Utah, on Interstate 70 on Aug. 16, 2004. Killed were Evertina Tapia, Andres Torres and Frank Enriquez.

A suit was filed by the surviving relatives and guardians of the children against Goodyear, Ford Motor Company and Valley View Hitch & Truck Rental. Both Ford and Valley View settled their claim.

During the pre-trial maneuvering, District Judge Sally Loehrer found that Goodyear failed to produce a witness and gave improper responses to interrogatories. She found that Goodyear “has taken the approach of stalling, obstructing and objecting” in its pre-trial behavior. As a sanction, Loehrer ruled that Goodyear could not present a defense of liability but only could argue to the jury the amount of compensatory damages and if it was subject to punitive damages.

The jury came back with the $32.2 million verdict but didn’t return punitive damages.

Source: The Las Vegas Sun

Kevin Callahan has been charged with traffic violations for a fatal crash that occurred in Baltimore on October 5th.

Callahan was working for United Postal Service (UPS) when he ran a red light and smashed broadside into a car driven by Baltimore Sun business editor Tim Wheatley. Wheatley was driving his 9-year-old daughter Sarah to her elementary school, but never made it there. He was killed on the scene of the accident. Sarah barely survived the impact with severe head injuries.

Callahan was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. There were no problems with his vehicle. All it took was the unintentional violation of a simple traffic law to end a life of one person and nearly kill another.

Immediately after the accident, Callahan was suspended from his job as a UPS driver. After several weeks of investigation it was determined that he was at fault and he was subsequently fired.

A spokeswoman for UPS admitted that the accident was completely avoidable. Callahan has been charged with failure to stop at a red light and negligent driving.

Callahan had no intent to harm Wheatley and his young daughter. He faces only the fines associated with each of the three citations. While this is good new for him, it admittedly leaves little closure for the Wheatley family.

Last month, there was a drunk driving car crash in Utah resulting in the death of a passenger.

Jerome Richard had been drinking, and drove his truck onto a raised median to pass a car ahead of him. The truck flipped as he drove off of the median and his passenger, Shelynda DeJoelie was thrown from the car. DeJoelie died from the resulting injuries.

Under Utah State Law, Richard may be charged with automobile homicide. If convicted, he could spend up to five years in prison for this felony.

Drunk driving is an all-too common occurrence across the United States. Approximately every 30 seconds, there is another wreck that involves an intoxicated driver.

One possible way to curtail drunk driving is to install breath ignitions on the vehicles of repeat offenders. In order to start the car, the driver must breathe into the device. The car will not start if it detects alcohol on the driver’s breath. This ignition lock system could save lives by keeping drunken drivers off the roads.