Robin Dawson v. Robert Underwood, et al.
Published: Nov. 28, 1998 | Result Date: Jul. 20, 1998 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: CIV175481 Verdict – $10,000
Judge
Court
Ventura Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Thomas J. Clifford
(medical)
C.R. Joshi
(medical)
Defendant
Richard D. Scheinberg
(medical)
Facts
On Oct. 7, 1996, plaintiff Robin Dawson, a 40-year-old female police officer, responded to a suicide in progress call at the defendant's residence. When plaintiff arrived at defendant's residential neighborhood, she parked a few homes down from defendant's residence pursuant to standard police practice. The plaintiff got out of her car, she looked up and saw the defendant's pickup truck coming at her vehicle head-on. The defendant rammed the front of his truck into the front end of the police vehicle causing significant property damage. The plaintiff got out of her vehicle to restrain defendant and defendant fled the scene. The same evening, plaintiff had low back pain and right leg pain. The plaintiff developed episodes of nerve root irritation and had two weeks of physical therapy. When the plaintiff returned to work, she experienced low back pain and leg pain while sitting for long hours in the police car. Eventually, after a year and half, plaintiff resigned from the police department and took a job working for a financial services office. The plaintiff brought this action against the defendant based on negligence.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiff made a C.C.P. º998 settlement demand for $14,999. The defendant made a C.C.P. º998 offer of compromise for $8,000.
Injuries
The plaintiff claimed a soft disc herniation at L4-S1 measuring approximately 3 millimeters.
Other Information
The verdict was reached approximately one year after the case was filed. A settlement conference was held in June 1998 before James McGahan resulting in no settlement. The defense orthopedic expert, Dr. Richard Scheinberg testified on cross-examination that plaintiff was injured, but not to any significant extent.
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