Facts

Second Chance Body Armor Inc., manufactured, packaged and sold bullet-resistant vests including the Ultima Body Armor Vest. Toyobo Co. Ltd. provided the Zylon fiber used as a component in the vest's ballistic panels. Ultima vests were advertised by Second Chance as the newest, lightest, and best body armor available. Second Chance claimed that its Zylon-based vests performed better than Kevlar, which was the industry standard. Gregory Campbell, a police officer for the city of Burbank, was wearing a Second Chance Ultima Body Armor vest on Nov. 15, 2003. He was on duty when he was shot in the head. The bullet entered his skull behind his right ear and lodged near his cervical spinal cord. Campbell filed suit against Second Chance Body Armor Inc. and Toyobo Co. Ltd. for product liability.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
The plaintiff claimed that the first shot hit him in the abdomen and the ballistic material failed, allowing the bullet to mushroom through the vest. The plaintiff claimed that Second Chance and Toyobo knew as early as 1998 that Zylon lost strength when exposed to fluorescent light for extended periods of time. Then, in 2001, Toyobo learned that the strength of the Zylon fiber decreased in high temperatures or under humid conditions. Toyobo allegedly shared this information with Second Chance, and Second Chance was aware that there may come a time when the vest would no longer stop bullets that they were designed and rated to stop.

In Dec. 2001, defendants held a "Zylon Crisis Management Meeting" to discuss the "disappointing and unexpected" ballistic test results. The defendants agreed that the Zylon material was degrading at a faster rate than they had anticipated. The chairman and founder of Second Chance wrote an internal memo to Second Chance executives addressing two "possible solutions," one was to discontinue making the vests; the other was to "continue operating as though nothing [is] wrong until one of our customers is killed.” Second Chance continued to design, manufacture and sell the vests until Sept. 9, 2003, when a final recall was issued on Ultima vests. Neither plaintiff nor any other consumer were made aware of the fact that the Zylon material was known to deteriorate and experience hydrolysis problems.

DEFENDANTS' CONTENTIONS:
The defendants contended that the plaintiff’s vest was not defective and performed precisely as it was designed to perform. The shot that impacted the plaintiff’s vest hit within an inch of the edge of the vest, which is outside of the “fair hit” zone. The federal agency that tests and certifies bullet-resistant vests has acknowledged that no ballistic material can continually and reliably stop impacts this close to a vest’s edge. Nonetheless, the plaintiff’s vest did stop the bullet that impacted it. The bullet was removed from the vest as part of the criminal investigation into the shooting. The shot to the head, which caused the plaintiff’s injuries did not impact the vest, and therefore, cannot be attributed to any deficiency in the vest. Further, the plaintiff cannot show that he was shot in the vest first and that this caused him to “double over,” thereby exposing his head as he claims. The defendants contended that even if that were the case, bullet-resistant vests are designed to protect vital organs – which the plaintiff’s vest did in this case and not to eliminate the force that accompanies being shot at close range.

Injuries

The plaintiff sustained a gunshot wound to his abdomen and skull. He was rendered an "incomplete quadriplegic" by the head wound. Although plaintiff has made a remarkable recovery and is able to leave his wheelchair, he continues to experience limited sensation throughout his body. He suffers from falls and muscle spasticity. He also experiences numbness in at the back of his skull, and severe neck and shoulder pain. He has lost hearing in his right ear, and bears a scar on the back of his skull. The plaintiff returned to work and was promoted to detective, where he still works at a desk job.

Result

The parties settled for $2,285,000. Second Chance paid $1,500,000, Toyobo paid $700,000 and Adamson Police Products paid $85,000. City of Burbank waived workers' compensation reimbursement rights.