Cruz v. Nissan North America

Wrongful Death

Los Angeles County

Superior Court Judge Randolph Hammock

Plaintiff’s Lawyers: Paul R. Kiesel, Kiesel Law LLP; F. Jerome Tapley, Ryan Lutz, D. Brett Tumbull, Cory Watson PC; Kirk J. Wolden, Carter Wolden Curtis LLP

Defense Lawyers: Mark V. Berry, Thomas M. Klein, Bowman and Brooke LLP

Last summer, Paul Kiesel was part of a case with an interesting plot twist. His client, Solomon Mathenge, was facing both a civil and criminal suit for crashing into a car and killing three people in 2012.

He was driving a recently purchased 2004 Nissan Infiniti at a Hollywood intersection when he ran a red light and fatally struck a minivan carrying mother Saida Mendez and her two children, Hilda and Stephanie Cruz.

Mathenge was facing serious criminal charges, but the tables began to turn in his favor when a prosecutor dropped the case upon discovering there was a class action related to the brake problem with the model car he was driving. Soon the victims’ family dropped the civil suit against him and together they jointly filed a lawsuit against Nissan North America Inc.

The victims’ family was represented by Alabama-based Cory Watson PC, while Kiesel argued in court that his client’s brake pedal went to the floor when he tried to stop before the intersection.

At issue was a sensor the plaintiff claimed malfunctioned, preceded by a horrible grinding noise. Attorneys argued an error registered in the car’s computer was evidence of the malfunction, but defense attorneys said there was no proof that the sensor failed when it did. They attributed the accident entirely to driver error, claiming Mathenge was speeding.

The jury found that Mathenge was speeding — 54 miles per hour before the collision, but that he could have stopped had his brakes functioned properly. Cruz v. Nissan North America et al., BC493949 (L.A. Super Ct., filed Jan. 14, 2016).

“The jury concluded he was negligent because he was exceeding the speed limit, but it was not a substantial factor. It was a brilliant conclusion,” Kiesel said.

In July, the jury found Nissan 100 percent at fault but did not find the car manufacturer acted with malice. Although the plaintiff did not get the $231 million it was seeking, Kiesel and his fellow attorneys said a $25 million verdict is big enough for Nissan to take notice.

The husband of the deceased wife received $14 million, while the daughter of the deceased mother received more than $7 million. Mathenge received $3.5 million.

“This is an amazing case only because Mr. Mathenge tragically killed three people with his vehicle and was being prosecuted for years for what happened,” Kiesel said.

Nissan never instituted a recall but did service the error upon request.

“The problem continues to exist today,” Kiesel said.

— Justin Kloczko