Attorneys of Boren, Oliver & Coffey Secure $4,590,000 Verdict

Congratulations to Steve Oliver, Dale Coffey, and John Boren having secured a verdict of $4,590,000 their client in a recent personal injury case involving the wrongful death of their client in a tragic car accident in Morgan County.

In August 2014, Boren, Oliver & Coffey’s client, a single mother with three children, was turning left onto Highway 37 to go north when a van hauling an Amish work crew and towing a trailer with a skid steer of approximately 10,000 pounds ran the red light at the intersection of Highway 37 and State Road 252. It was a foggy morning, and the driver of the van was unable to stop the van and trailer before they made impact with our client. Sadly, our client lost her life in the accident.

The trailer had been released to the Amish work crew by Arnold Lumber located in Decatur, Indiana. Two of Arnold Lumber’s employees were involved in the renting of the vehicle to the Amish work crew, and both employees admitted at trial that they knew the Amish were unfamiliar with the transportation of heavy equipment and motor vehicles.

The trailer had brakes on all four wheels that were functioning and in good condition. Due to the trailer’s weight, wheel brakes were required and had to be configured so the brakes could be operated from the cab of the vehicle towing the trailer. This in turn required that the towing vehicle had the appropriate wiring, which it did, the appropriate connecting device, which it did not, and most importantly, the towing vehicle had to be equipped with a brake control device mounted in the cab, which it failed to have.

In short, the brakes were rendered inoperable due to the lack of the appropriate connecting device and lack of a brake control unit.

After five hours of deliberation, the Morgan County jury returned a verdict in favor of Boren, Oliver & Coffey’s client in the amount of $4,590,000 and assessed defendant Arnold Lumber as being 81% at fault and the driver of the vehicle being 19% at fault. The attorneys at Boren, Oliver & Coffey are proud to have represented their client in this case and to have played a part in providing justice to her three children.