Truck driver Rickey Barron and the husband-and-wife Englands had a traffic altercation on Interstate 85; after an exchange of obscene gestures, the truck driver confronted the two at a gas station, punched Sandra England in the face, then drove off, dropped off his truck, and disappeared to the world.
So the Englands sued the trucking companies that employed Barron. The theory? The trucking companies knew that Barron had speeding tickets and should’ve fired him. So, a driver’s speeding tickets apparently makes a trucking company liable for a driver’s criminal assault. A judge let this get to trial, and a Coweta County, Georgia jury decided to “send a message” and awarded $3M, two thirds of which are punitive damages against the trucking companies. (Blair Meeks, “Road Rage Victim Gets $3 Million”, WXIA, Apr. 27).
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