A Philadelphia jury recently awarded $19.1 million to a man who was struck by a car while trying to push a broken down vehicle off the roadway four years ago. The man lost his leg as a result of the accident and suffered other severe injuries. Following a three-day trial, the jury ruled that the driver who struck the man had been negligent in the accident.
The motor vehicle accident occurred around 2 a.m. on July 26, 2009. The accident victim had been a passenger in his friend’s car when his friend rear-ended a car in front of them. The accident reportedly caused the friend’s car to stall, so the accident victim and his friend attempted to push it off the Philadelphia roadway.
As they pushed their car, the vehicle that had been hit followed behind with its flashers on. Suddenly, the negligent driver rear-ended that car and sent it careening into the accident vicitm, who was 24-years-old at the time. The man suffered serious injuries and eventually had to have his right leg amputated above the knee.
The Bucks County man then filed suit against his friend and the negligent driver who slammed into the car with the flashing lights. Following the trial, the jury concluded that actions on behalf of the friend as well as the negligent driver were responsible for the man’s injuries.
Interestingly, because the negligent driver did not have auto insurance, the friend’s auto insurance carrier will end up footing the entire bill. The attorney for the accident vicitm said he hopes the $19.1 million award will help his client “deal with the long, challenging road ahead of him.”
Source: Pennsylvania Record, “Phila. jury awards $19.1 million to man who lost leg after being struck by vehicle,” Jon Campisi, May 28, 2013