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The New Jersey Law Journal (12/3, Gottlieb) reported, "The beer refreshment vendor at Giants Stadium agreed to pay $23.5 million to settle the case of a girl paralyzed in a crash with a drunken football fan under an 18-month-old secret agreement that an appeals court unsealed Wednesday at the request of a public advocacy group."
Appeals court unseals settlement terms. The New Jersey Law Journal (12/4, Gottlieb) reports that the Appellate Division held "that a Bergen County judge erred when he sealed all records of the June 2007 settlement and subsequent proceedings to protect the privacy of the girl, Antonia Verni." The rationale for keeping the records sealed, which was to avoid abuse of the funds by the victim's father, "was too weak to overcome the presumption of openness of court proceedings and the public's right to know about a highly publicized case with significant issues, the appeals court said Wednesday." The Journal adds, "The ruling was a victory for Public Citizen, a Washington advocacy group associated with Ralph Nader that seeks to intervene in cases around the country when court records are kept from the public."
The AP (12/4, Porter) reports a contrasting settlement amount, saying that Aramark Corp. "has settled a lawsuit by the family of a girl paralyzed in a car accident caused by a drunken New York Giants fan for $26 million."
Garland Reynolds and his wife, Bonnie, were awarded $3.5 million in connection with the 2002 rollover accident that claimed the life of their son, Matthew. The Reynolds sued GM in 2006, alleging that the design of the 1995 Chevrolet Blazer created stability issues that contributed to the fatal wreck. The jury awarded no punitive damages.
A jury of five men and three women deliberated for nearly three days in U.S. District Court in Gainesville, GA before finding GM at fault.
The jury said to General Motors that the Blazer is unsafe and it should not have been designed without proper stability, attorney for the plaintiff said.
On June 3, 2002, Bonnie Reynolds was driving a 1995 Chevy Blazer on the Interstate with her son in the front seat when the Blazer was struck by a drunk driver who lost control of his Pontiac Sunbird.
The Blazer flipped several times and Matthew Reynolds was ejected. He died the following day in an area hospital.
The driver who struck the Reynolds' car was later convicted of first-degree vehicular homicide and is serving a lengthy prison sentence.
Plaintiffs presented evidence at trial of other rollover accidents involving the Blazer. The plaintiffs contended that the make and model was built with too high a center of gravity for the wheel base, and that the "track," or distance between the wheels, should have been widened to prevent stability problems.
Blazers manufactured from 1995 through 2002 have similar design flaws. The Blazer was subsequently phased out in favor of the TrailBlazer, which has a wider wheelbase.
Evidence presented at trial called for a recall.
General Motors maintains that the vehicle is safe.
Company spokeswoman Geri Lama said GM was disappointed in the jury's verdict. They contend that the rollover accident is the sole fault of the drunk driver who struck the Blazer. GM is considering its options of an appeal.There was never an offer to settle, according to Plaintiffs attorneys.
GM was represented by a team of King & Spalding attorneys led by partner W. Ray Persons,
The case, in the Northern District of Georgia, is Garland Reynolds Jr. et al., v. General Motors Corp., No. 2:04-CV-106.
