McIntosh County Jury Awards $4.5M in Tractor-Trailer Collision

On March 17, 2004, a tractor-trailer collided with a passenger vehicle on I-95 in McIntosh County, Georgia. The plaintiff driver and plaintiff passenger alleged that traffic had slowed, but the defendant driver, operating a tractor-trailer leased to the defendant company, failed to slow down and struck their vehicle. The plaintiff passenger sustained severe injuries, including left hemothorax, pneumothorax, left rib and scapular fractures, multiple T-spine fractures, and a coma, incurring over $1,000,000 in medical expenses.

The plaintiffs filed a lawsuit on December 13, 2005, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, Brunswick Division. They brought claims of negligence, negligence per se, negligent retention, supervision, or hiring, and negligent entrustment against both the defendant driver and the defendant company. Both sides presented expert testimony concerning accident reconstruction, medical evaluations, and vocational rehabilitation during the proceedings.

On November 17, 2006, a jury determined that the defendant driver was negligent in operating the tractor-trailer. The jury also found that the defendant company was negligent in its retention, supervision, or hiring of the driver. The jury awarded the plaintiff driver $1,500,000 and the plaintiff passenger $3,000,000, for a total of $4,500,000. Judgment was subsequently entered for the plaintiffs in the awarded amounts on November 20, 2006.