Robert W. Sweetin of Matheny Sears Linkert & Jaime recently obtained a defense verdict following a three-week trial in San Francisco.
On June 14, 2019, Plaintiff Nina Travis, 29, was a backseat passenger in a rideshare pool car driven by Defendant Christopher Morales when the vehicle was involved in a low speed, low impact intersection accident with a vehicle driven by Defendant Matthew Gubera. No police, fire, or EMS responded. Plaintiff hailed another rideshare vehicle and continued to her destination. The event data recorder from the Morales vehicle showed a delta-v of 6 mph.
The court bifurcated trial on its own motion into a liability phase and a causation/damages phase. After the liability phase, the jury found that Defendant Morales was not liable for the accident by a 12-0 vote. The jury found that Defendant Gubera was responsible for the accident by a 9-3 vote. Defendant Morales was dismissed and the case proceeded into the second phase.
Plaintiff claimed the accident caused injuries to her head, neck, ribs, and low back with radicular symptoms into her lower extremities. She sought emergency care at several San Francisco hospitals. She underwent chiropractic treatment and physical therapy simultaneously for nearly a year and took 15 months off work as a security guard as directed by her chiropractor, David Basco. She also sought orthopedic surgery consultation with Santi Rao, MD, and pain management treatment with Moshe Lewis, MD. Plaintiff underwent a lumbar spine MRI which showed no evidence of trauma or degeneration. Dr. Rao testified that Plaintiff experienced pain differently than most individuals as a result of childhood trauma. Dr. Rao and Dr. Basco both testified that the accident caused a low back muscle strain/sprain injury, along with injuries to her neck and ribs. Defendant’s biomechanical engineer testified that the accident produced insufficient forces to cause injury. Defendant’s medical expert testified that the accident may have caused a soft tissue sprain/strain type of injury, if anything.
In closing arguments, Plaintiff’s counsel sought more than $900,000 in damages. After deliberating for 45 mins., the jury returned a 12-0 vote finding no causation.