Griffin Dix, Lynn Dix v. Beretta U.S.A. Corp.
Published: Nov. 2, 2004 | Result Date: Aug. 2, 2004 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: C7506819 Verdict – $0
Judge
Court
Alameda Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Joshua H. Lerner
(Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher)
Defendant
Craig A. Livingston
(Livingston Law Firm)
Experts
Plaintiff
Lester W. Roane
(technical)
Stephen Teret
(technical)
Vaughn Adams
(technical)
Defendant
Seth Bredbury
(technical)
Christine T. Wood
(technical)
Facts
In September 1993, Clarence Soe purchased a Beretta Model 92 Compact L semi-automatic pistol, which he then kept chamber-loaded and magazine-loaded in an unlocked camera bag in his home. Soe's 14-year-old son, Michael, found the gun one day in May 1994, and after removing the magazine from the pistol, took it upstairs to show it to his friend, Kenzo Dix, 15. Michael forgot to unload the bullet in the gun's chamber. As Michael was playing "cops and robbers" with Kenzo, and after he had manipulated the gun's manual safety into the "fire" position, he pulled the trigger while pointing the gun at Kenzo. The gun fired and the bullet struck Kenzo in the chest. Kenzo died shortly thereafter. The plaintiffs, Kenzo's parents, Griffin and Lynn Dix, sued the pistol's distributor, Beretta U.S.A. Corp., Accokeek, Md., for the wrongful death of Kenzo on a products liability theory.
Injuries
The Dixes sought $15 million for the loss of care, comfort, and society from their minor son.
Other Information
An appellate court found prejudicial juror misconduct in 1998 trial which ended in a 9-3 defense verdict. The first retrial in December 2004 resulted in a mistrial when the jury was unable to reach a verdict following four days of deliberation.
Deliberation
five hours
Poll
9-3 (that the pistol performed as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect), 9-3 (that the design of the pistol was not a cause of Kenzo Dix's death)
Length
12 days
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