$ 1.225 Million Award – Talking on cell phone causes intersection crash
Excerpt from Virginia Lawyers Weekly – December 27, 2010.
On May 27, 2008, the plaintiff was traveling in a westerly direction on Bellevue Avenue and stopped at the intersection with Brook Road in the City of Richmond. The defendant was traveling east on Bellevue Avenue. The plaintiff’s light turned green and she proceeded forward and was struck by defendant’s vehicle, which was making a left turn when the collision occurred. Liability was initially being disputed by the defendant until subpoenaed cell phone records established that the defendant was talking on the cell phone when the accident occurred. The plaintiff was 82 years old at the time of the accident. The plaintiff was transported by ambulance to VCU Medical Center. Upon admission to the hospital, the plaintiff was diagnosed with an open right ankle fracture of the medial malleolus and a comminuted fracture of the distal tibia and fibula which resulted in the plaintiff developing a chronic bone infection at the fracture site.