March 12, 2007

Law.com reports that Daimler-Chrysler has been held liable for $50 million in puntives, on top of the $5.2 million in compensatory damages already decided, in a wrongful death suit filed by the estate of Richard Mraz. Mraz was killed when his twelve-year-old Dodge Ram truck rolled over him. Plaintiffs alleged that a design defect caused the truck's automatic transmission to go into Reverse from Park. Chrysler retorted that "The accident occurred because Mr. Mraz ignored proper safety procedures by exiting a vehicle that was still running, then ... attempting to jump into a vehicle while it was moving." Apparently the jury did not appreciate this claim... and plaintiffs deliberately asked the trial judge to craft jury instructions that took February's Philip Morris ruling into account.

[Further coverage: Ted at Overlawyered -- ed.]