James Noble v. DW Equipment, Inc. dba Ditch Witch of Southern Arizona; Charles Machine Works, Inc.
Published: Jun. 17, 1995 | Result Date: Jun. 5, 1995 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 300113 – $4,400,000
Judge
Court
Pima Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Dan Horton
(technical)
Vaughn Adams
(technical)
Defendant
Carl Nida
(technical)
Juan Herrera
(technical)
Facts
On January 10, 1994, Plaintiff Jimmy Noble, a 33-year-old underground construction foreman, was struck in the chest by a 4-foot steel rod from a Ditch Witch P-80 boring machine which was being operated as part of a sales demonstration by Defendant Ditch Witch of Arizona for Plaintiff's employer. Mr. Noble had been a foreman for 3 to 4 years and was in charge of safety on the job site. Ditch Witch products are manufactured by Defendant Charles Machine Works.
Settlement Discussions
Plaintiff contends his last pretrial demand was $3,600,000 or $2,000,000 if the Workers' compensation lien and future credit were waived or significantly compromised; and Defendants' last pretrial offer was $900,000. Defendant contends that, 2 days before trial, Plaintiff demanded $2,450,000 from Defendant DW Equipment.
Specials in Evidence
$97,000 $13,125 $350,000 to $590,000 (per Plaintiff) $1,000,000 (per Defendant) $767,000 (per Plaintiff) $1,500,000 (per Defendant)
Injuries
Chest trauma causing massive heart attack and severe cardiac contusion irreversibly damaging the main pumping chamber of the heart and a major artery; Plaintiff will require a heart transplant within the next 5 years. Treatments and/or surgeries to date were not disclosed. Plaintiff's 31-year-old wife, Kelly, and his 4-year-old twin sons, Josh and Corey, claimed loss of companionship and consortium injuries.
Deliberation
5 hours
Poll
unanimous
Length
7.5 days
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