Here is another case of misdirected blame. I wonder what it must be like to debate assigning blame during jury deliberations. Do the majority really think that U-Haul is to blame for someone not tieing down what they haul? I guess pickup truck owners are blameless as well and the truck manufacturers should be blamed when something flies off the back.
Quote:
Woman blinded on I-405 gets $15 million
A Renton woman who was left blind and disfigured by a 2004 freeway accident said Friday that she hopes a King County jury's $15.5 million verdict will help her get back to living a more normal, independent life. The Superior Court jury struggled for nearly a week before deciding U-Haul was mainly to blame when a board smashed through Maria Federici's windshield, nearly killing the University of Washington graduate.
Jurors found the company 67 percent at fault and laid the remaining 33 percent on James Hefley, the driver who didn't tie down the entertainment center he'd been towing in an open U-Haul trailer.
Jurors, however, found that Federici had no fault in what happened. Under state law, that key decision means U-Haul would have to pay the entire $15.5 million if Hefley can't pay his share -- a likelihood, given that he's declared bankruptcy.
Jurors found the trailer Hefley was towing that night was "not reasonably safe" and did not come with adequate instructions or warnings. They agreed U-Haul International Inc. and U-Haul Co. of Washington were negligent.
Hefley was cited for failing to secure a load. He didn't face criminal charges because prosecutors didn't find enough evidence that he knew he'd caused an accident.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21719823/
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