Roberto Martinez was washing Lori Hamby’s used 1991 Dodge Caravan while Hamby’s two-year-old daughter, Mary Madison Hamby Garcia, was playing inside of the vehicle by herself. The van was parked on top of a long driveway and the emergency brakes off. The key in the ignition in the “on” position so he could play the radio; the doors were open so he could vacuum the vehicle. Martinez was retrieving Windex fifteen feet away when Hamby apparently dislodged the automatic transmission from park. With the ignition key-lock the disabled, the vehicle hurtled down the driveway, killing Hamby when it struck a tree, jarring her from the vehicle, and pinning her beneath the tire, where she died of asphyxiation compression.
This is, an Atlanta jury held, 51% Chrysler’s fault. The theory on which the jury ruled in favor of the plaintiff is on the theory that Chrysler failed to adequately warn of the risk of leaving children unattended in vehicles with the key in the ignition—even though Hamby’s mother, Lori Hamby, only “glanced” through the owner’s manual, which did warn against it. Madison Hamby, who was dead on the scene, was awarded $2.25 million for pain and suffering on top of the $2.25 million for wrongful death. The jury ruled for Chrysler on the funeral expenses, however. Chrysler is appealing. (Greg Land, “DaimlerChrysler to Appeal $3.4M Awarded in Minivan Accident”, Fulton County Daily Report, Mar. 6 (via Prince); DeeAnn Durbin, “DaimlerChrysler ordered to pay family in minivan lawsuit”, AP/Detroit News, Mar. 3; Hamby v. DaimlerChrysler, No. 1:03CV:0937-CAP (N.D. Ga.)).
6 Comments
If he had put the key in “ACCESSORY” he could still play the radio with the tranmisson quadrant remaining locked.
Cars are patently dangerous and must be taken out of the hands of guiltless incompetents!
We need a class action to ban cars from the streets and driveways of our communities…
Soon to appear in new Owners Manuals:
WARNING: VEHICLE IS UNSAFE WHEN PLACED IN PARK WITHOUT EMERGENCY BRAKE ENGAGED ATOP STEEP HILL WITH UNATTENDED INFANT CHILD IN VEHICLE WITHIN REACH OF AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION CONTROL, KEY IS IN IGNITION AND OWNER-IDIOT IS RETRIEVING WINDEX
How does a judge allow a claim like this to go to a jury? It doesn’t even pass the laugh test. The problem is not as much with juries as with judges. If judges dismissed enough of these cases on motion and imposed sanctions (where available), maybe we’d have fewer of them (both cases and judges).
The Garza Vioxx case and the jury system
If you’ve been relying entirely on AP or national press coverage of the Garza case, you perhaps do not realize what a giant miscarriage of justice it is. Not just that, by the Garza’s own theory of the case, Leonel…
If judges [did some action], maybe we’d have fewer of them (both cases and judges).
Yes, well, people generally don’t intentionally try to lower th numbr of jobs availabl to them…
But yes, this is another painfully obvious case that should have been laughed out of court, and yet, the jury selection process allows a lawyer to get a jury from the 10% of the population dumb enough to be manipulated to get what he wants…