Cameron County Jury Finds 1993 Ford F-150 Defective
Cameron County, Texas -- A 1993 Ford F-150, Ford Motor Company's most popular truck, was found to have a defectively designed occupant restraint system and occupant protection system. Specifically, the jury determined that roof structure and the and the occupant restraint system of the vehicle was unreasonably dangerous as designed. The jury, after deliberating almost two days, determined that the 1993 Ford F-150 did not provide safe occupant retention to consumers during a rollover sequence.
"Ford Motor Company has ignored the safety of its consumers. They knew that the roof structures on these vehicle do not protect their consumers," said attorney Mikal C. Watts of the Watts Law Firm. "The jury sent a message to Ford that they need to do a better job in protecting their consumers from a known defect."
The jury found the 1993 Ford F-150 was defective in design, that there was a safer alternative design, and that they could have prevented the consumer's death. Ford ignored the safety concerns and put profit ahead of consumer protection.
This case revolved around a vehicular collision occurring on or about March 8, 2004. Jessica Garcia was the properly belted front-right passenger as the Garcia family was traveling in the left-hand northbound lane of traffic on US Highway 77 in a 1993 Ford F-150 pickup (V.I.N. 1FTET14Y6PLA48587) (the "subject vehicle") driven by Agustin Garcia. At that same time and location, Hazel Scaman was driving a Chevrolet S-10 pickup in the right-hand northbound lane of traffic. At some point in time, Ms. Scaman's vehicle interacted with the Garcia vehicle, causing Agustin Garcia to lose control of the subject vehicle. The Garcia vehicle rolled and, as a result of the rollover and the subsequent failure of the subject vehicle's occupant protection system, the vehicle's roof and seatbelt failed, and Jessica Garcia was partially ejected and killed.
"Ford is aware that rollover accidents will happen and they have chosen not to protect their consumers," said Plaintiffs' co-counsel Hunter Craft of the Watts Law Firm. "The consumers are owed a duty by Ford to sell them vehicles which will protect them, and yet Ford doesn't tests these vehicles in rollovers," he added.
"Any one driving a Ford F-series pick up should be scared, real scared," said Plaintiffs' co-counsel Robert Patterson of the Watts Law Firm.
Mikal C. Watts and his law firm have been at the forefront of defective product lawsuits throughout the nation. "This is the second trial against Ford involving a F-150 that we have received a jury verdict against Ford," Watts said. Watts was lead counsel for the Plaintiffs in Castro v. Ford, where a jury returned a verdict against Ford in 2003.
Watts Law Firm, LLP, partners, Mikal Watts, J. Hunter Craft, Robert J. Patterson, and Ray Marchan tried the case for the plaintiffs. Ford was represented by attorneys from three law firms: Mark Berry Edgar Gutierrez, of Bowman and Brooke, L.L.P. in Los Angeles, Iman Solliman, of Bowman & Brooke, L.L.P. in Phoenix, Arizona, and John Chambliss and Michael Eady of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, L.L.P. in Austin, Texas, and Eduardo Rodriguez (President of the State Bar of Texas) and Jaime Saenz, of Rodriguez, Colvin, Chaney and Saenz, L.L.P., in Brownsville, Texas. The driver of the bullet vehicle, Hazel Scaman, was represented by Bryan K. Harris of Harris Mejia L.L.P. in Corpus Christi, Texas. Mr. Garcia, the driver of the F-150, was represented by Tony James, of Hodge, James & Garza, in Harlingen, Texas.