RRD Attorney Wins Defense Verdict

On Wednesday, August 7, 2013, a jury returned a defense verdict in favor of a Ryan Ryan Deluca client involved in a motor vehicle accident on April 28, 2011.  The facts of the case were in dispute as the plaintiff and defendant provided different versions of how the accident occurred.  RRD trial counsel persuaded the plaintiff’s counsel and the court to utilize box voir dire instead of individual juror interviews and was able to complete jury selection in less than half a day.  RRD’s client made no offer to resolve the case prior to trial based upon its belief that the plaintiff was at fault for the accident.  The jury deliberated for ten (10) minutes before returning a verdict in favor of the defendant.  

The defendant was the driver in a motor vehicle accident which occurred on Whalley Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut.  The plaintiff claimed that she was traveling down Whalley Avenue and stopped to make a left turn.  The plaintiff claimed that she had successfully completed her left turn across Whalley Avenue and was stopped for at least two (2) seconds while waiting for pedestrians to clear past the parking lot that she was attempting to enter when she was struck on the rear passenger side quarter panel by the defendant.  At trial, the plaintiff claimed soft tissue injuries to her cervical spine and lumbar spine.  She also asserted that she would require future medical care for the remaining fifty five (55) years of her life.  She asked the jury to award her damages to compensate her for her permanent, life-long injuries.

The RRD Attorney was able to convince the jury that the defendant was not at fault for the accident, but that instead the plaintiff made a sudden left turn in front of his client.  The defense also contested the severity of the plaintiff’s injuries and her claimed future medical treatment.