Man with prior neck injury hurt during ‘minimal’ rearender – $450,000 Verdict

Plaintiff Hicks had cervical (C6-7) fusion surgery in 1975 after a horrific auto acci­dent where he broke his neck. However, he has had few (if any) problems with his neck in the 40 years since. In De­cember 2012, a Mack Truck rear-ended his 2000 Toyota Camry after both had been stopped at a stop light. The “minimal” nature of the impact was not at issue. Hicks’ pri­mary care provider, Dr. John MacKnight, who also serves as the co-head of sports medicine at the University of Vir­ginia, testified that the plaintiff was more susceptible to significant injury because of his past injuries (in addition to some degenerative changes). Dr. William Andrews was designated as the defendants’ only expert witness and his testimony was recorded nine days prior to the beginning of the trial. However, the defendants decided not to present his testimony and relied upon their cross-examination of Dr. MacKnight. MacKnight testified that Hicks’ problems were significant and that the pain he suffers is debilitat­ing and unlikely to ever go away. The plaintiff is 65 and a former heroin addict. He developed the addiction when he became addicted to morphine after his 1975 accident. Since then, the jury learned, he went to prison for several years, but turned his life around and became clean and so­ber for good in 1993. He worked at a drug treatment/outreach center in Charlottesville until he retired in 2013. Plaintiff’s coun­sel asked for compensation “in the neighborhood of $700-800k” in closing argument.

[16-T-127]

Type of action: Personal Injury
Injuries alleged: Soft tissue exacerbation of previous injuries. Plaintiff suffered a broken neck as a result of an automobile accident in 1975 wherein he remained in traction for over a year. However, his injuries had largely resolved despite the severity of the injuries and degen­erative changes. His injuries subsequent to the December 2012 accident that was the subject of this lawsuit were such that the physicians deter­mined that he would not benefit from surgery and would simply have to live with the pain and discomfort.
Name of case: Hicks v. Leptoe and Van Der Linde Housing Inc.
Court: Charlottesville Circuit Court
Case no.: CL14-459
Tried before: Jury
Name of judge: Hon. Richard E. Moore
Date resolved: July 28, 2016
Special damages: $45,000.00
Demand: None
Offer: $25,000.00
Verdict or settlement: Jury Verdict
Amount: $450,000.00
Attorneys for plaintiff: Christopher L. Ander­son and Thomas L. Johnson, Richmond
Attorney for defendant: John Cattano, Charlottesville
Plaintiff’s experts: John MacKnight, M.D.
Defendant’s experts: William Andrews, M.D. (previously recorded testimony not offered at trial)
Insurance carrier: State Farm