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

A 10-year-old girl was killed last month in Missouri when the ATV on which she was riding with a friend flipped. It landed on top of her.

Madison County Sheriff’s Capt. Brad Wells said the department was called to the 11000 block of Bononi Road in New Douglas at 6:20 p.m. for a report of an ATV accident.

Montana Niccole Garner of Livingston was a passenger on a four-wheel, adult-size ATV being driven by a 12-year-old female friend. They were on the private farmland of the 12-year-old’s family, which is not far from the victim’s own home, Wells said.

“They were making a turn and it flipped and then landed on the child,”  said Madison County Sheriff’s Capt. Brad Wells. “This appears to be strictly an accident.”

Emergency personnel were summoned to the scene, and the girl was taken first to Community Memorial Hospital in Staunton, then flown to a St. Louis area hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

The ATV’s driver suffered minor injuries, Wells said.

Area police have seen a number of fatal ATV incidents in the last few years. Wells said people using ATVs should follow warning stickers that indicate the limits of the vehicle and the recommended ages of drivers, and should wear appropriate safety gear.

Source: The Telegraph

53-year-old Dennis Ralich was killed when he was thrown from his Honda all-terrain vehicle.

Ralich’s death is puzzling since he was known as a skilled and responsible driver.  The road was flat at the scene of the accident, and investigators believe that speed was not an issue.

Steven Ralich, Dennis’s son, found his father’s ATV rolled over near a soybean field.  He later found Dennis’s body in a soybean row.  Emergency personnel arrived at the scene but were unable to revive Ralich.  It was concluded that Ralich died instantly from the multiple injuries he suffered.

The county Sheriff’s Department is conducting an investigation.  The department is looking at Ralich’s ATV for signs of mechanical failure, but they have not ruled out the possibility that Ralich hit an animal.

The county coroner, said, “There was some damage to the ATV from overturning, and there may have been some other issues with the machine.”

ATVs are notoriously top-heavy and poorly designed. If you or someone you love has been killed or injured by one of these dangerous machines, please contact an experienced Texas car wreck attorney for professional insight.