Advanced Search

  Hugh Juarez, a 30-year-old machine operator was riding his motorcycle in the right lane in Los Angeles, California in May, 1990 when he was struck by a dump truck making a right turn from the left lane next to Juarez. He sustained injuries in the accident, including a fractured tibia, fibula, and a spinal injury. At the time, Inocencio Heredia, the dump truck driver, was on the job for Jimmy King Trucking, a contractor at a nearby construction site. Juarez decided to hire an attorney and sue the dump truck driver and his employer. After the accident, however, Heredia disappeared. Jimmy King Trucking therefore represented the sole defendant at the stand during the trial. They alleged that Heredia was not on the job at the time, and that he was buying auto parts for his personal vehicle. In the end, the jury sided with Juarez and his lawyers, awarding him $658,784.17.

  This accident was occured when a 17-year-old motorcyclist collided with a commercial vehicle at a busy intersection, resulting in the youth's death. The incident occurred at 7 p.m. on May 8, 1987 in clear weather, at an intersection with two lanes and a left­ hand turn lane running south to north and two lanes north to south, in the City of Lafayette, California. Michael Richardson, 45-years-old and Audrey Richardson are the parents of a 17-year-old boy who was killed in a motorcycle accident. They argued that an employee of the defending copmany, Style Master Exteriors, who was driving a car, took an illegal left turn which blocked the boy’s right of way. The boy’s motorcycle crashed into the car, and he died at the site of the accident. The parents claimed the illegal left turn was the cause of the accident and that the driver, and therefore his comapany as well, were the negligent party. The case was settled against the driver himself before trial for his insurance policy limits of $15,000. The driver's employer, Style Master Exteriors, argued the crash was caused by the negligence of the motorcycle rider. They alleged that the motorcyclist was racing with another boy. They claimed he therefore was driving too fast and following the other boy too closely, and that this caused him to be inattentive to vehicles in the intersection. The employer further claimed that, because the boy died of a head injury and was not wearing a helmet, his injuries were caused by his own negligence. The vehicle driver's employer also claimed the boy’s mother negligently entrusted her son with the motorcycle. Ultimately, the Richardsons won their suit against the employer of the vehicle's driver, Style Master Exteriors. The total amount awarded to the deceased motorcyclist's parents totaled $907,751. Their son, however, was found to be 37.5% at fault, and therefore the total amount they recieved totaled $567,345.