On November 11, 2020, our client was traveling home when a 16-year-old drove their dad’s mustang sports car through an intersection at a high rate of speed, colliding with our client’s truck. The impact caused our client’s truck to fly through the air and land upside down. A witness estimated the defendant was traveling at 80 miles per hour, or more than double the speed limit. The defendant told the police who responded that he—a healthy 16-year-old with no history of blackouts—that he “blacked out” and did not remember what happened. But he did not tell the EMS professionals who treated him, or healthcare providers at the hospital, anything about blacking out. The defendant attempted to claim that he had been feeling ill earlier in the day and passed out while driving. However, his medical records did not note any sign of sickness whatsoever.
The collision severely injured our clients’ shoulders. Our client, a retired marine and hard-working steelworker, was unable to return to work despite undergoing multiple surgeries and several hours of physical therapy. He had incurred about $100,000 in medical bills. The defendants hired a doctor who testified that our client was making up his ongoing symptoms, and offered our client $ 632,998 dollars prior to trial as a final offer.
Attorney Johnny Simon took the case to trial, and presented plaintiff’s case to a St. Louis County Jury over two days. Although defendant admitted liability, their defense team attempted to pull the jurors attention away from their client’s actions and made accusations that our client was “feigning” his injuries and was a “malingerer”. The jurors saw through defense’s claims and awarded our client $1.25 Million in compensatory damages and $15,000 in punitive damages.
Verdict: $1.25 Million – Compensatory | $15,000 – Punitive
