Facts

On March 1, 2012, plaintiff Carly Bray, 17, was waiting for her school bus, at a bus stop at the intersection of Pony Express Trail and Mace Road in the Sierra foothill community of Camino. Defendant Kassandra Hoelscher was traveling westbound on Pony Express Trail on her way to high school when she lost control of her 1992 Chevrolet Blazer and slid into the bus stop, striking and pinning plaintiff against a utility guy-wire, resulting in a traumatic amputation of plaintiff's right leg just below the knee.

Plaintiff filed suit naming Hoelscher, the school district, and the County of El Dorado as defendants.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff contended that the location of the bus stop had been selected approximately 25 years ago by El Dorado Union High School District. Plaintiff alleged that the school district was liable for negligent placement of the school bus stop on the outside edge of a high-speed curve and that the county was liable for the dangerous condition of the curve on Pony Express Trail immediately east of the bus stop due to its irregular super-elevation.

Plaintiff conceded that the school district bore some liability for the bus stop placement but argued that the irregular banking was typical of most rural roads in the Sierra foothills and was not a cause of the subject accident.

Plaintiff argued that, due to the loss of her right leg, she was no longer able to participate in the physical activities she enjoyed before the accident including competitive volleyball, horseback riding, hiking, snowboarding, and swimming. Plaintiff also claimed that her injuries limit her future earning potential because she is no longer able to pursue her dream career as a registered nurse even though she had yet to begin nursing school at time of trial.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant Hoelscher denied liability. Defendant claimed that but for the negligent placement of the school bus stop on the outside of county's dangerous curve, plaintiff would not have been injured. At trial, Hoelscher also contended she lost control of her vehicle while traveling only 20 to 25 miles per hour in conditions plaintiff's accident reconstruction and meteorology experts conceded were snowy and icy at the time the collision occurred.

Settlement Discussions

Plaintiffs made a statutory demand of $2.9 million. Defendant offered her $100,000 policy limits but thereafter failed to protect defendant in a way that plaintiff contends constituted breaches of duty entitling defendant to full indemnification.

Damages

Prior to her recent right leg infection plaintiff was employed as a supermarket courtesy clerk, which required her to be on her feet several hours per day. Plaintiff asked the jury to award future lifetime medical and prosthetic care for her injuries, as well as support services due to her inability to physically manage household chores as she ages.

Injuries

After the accident, plaintiff was transported via life flight to Sutter Roseville Medical Center where she underwent knee disarticulation surgery to remove what remained of her right tibia and preserve the distal end of her femur to assist in weight bearing once fitted with a prosthesis. However, she subsequently developed an infection and required a second amputation revision surgery at Kaiser Permanente Roseville in April 2012, which required removing the femoral condyles thereby making her an above-the-knee amputee. Plaintiff received physical therapy, chiropractic care, and counseling for anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Recently, plaintiff's right leg became infected at the amputation site requiring her to discontinue use of her prosthesis for several months. Plaintiff's treating orthopedic surgeon and pain management/rehabilitation doctor testified that plaintiff would require a future surgical revision surgery to remove more of her right femur as well as other palliative care to treat her chronic pain.

Result

The jury found Hoelscher 50 percent negligent, El Dorado Union High School District 45 percent negligent, and County of El Dorado 5 percent negligent. The jury awarded a total of $9,860,631. After credit for pre-trial settlements, the net judgment against the defendant is approximately $4.8 million.

Other Information

EXPERT TESTIMONY: Plaintiff's traffic safety engineer, in a manner consistent with a declaration he submitted in opposition to the county's motion for summary judgment, opined that the super-elevation and bus stop placement were both causes of the plaintiff's damages. Plaintiff's accident reconstruction expert also testified that the irregular super-elevation was a likely cause of defendant's loss of control. The jury heard evidence that the bus stop was relocated after the subject accident due to safety concerns. Defendant's expert traffic safety engineer testified that the intersection where the bus stop was located had an accident rate at least three times higher than similar intersections statewide and that the accident history provided notice to the county and school district that the bus stop needed to be moved long before the subject accident occurred. Medical experts were not cross-examined. Prior to trial, plaintiff settled with El Dorado Union High School District for $4.5 million and County of El Dorado for $560,000. INSURER: Safeco for Kassandra Hoelscher.

Deliberation

two days

Length

three weeks