Back in August 2022, Ford was ordered to pay $1.7 billion in punitive damages over an allegation that the roofs used on 1999-2016 Ford Super Duty models aren’t strong enough to hold up in the event of a rollover crash. That decision stemmed from a wrongful death lawsuit originally filed in 2014, and since then, the automaker has faced a seemingly endless stream of additional lawsuits pertaining to the same matter. Now, The Blue Oval is asking a court to dismiss one of those Ford Super Duty roof collapse lawsuits.
As Ford Authority previously reported, a Georgia-based jury ruled in favor of the plaintiff in this particular Ford Super Duty roof crush lawsuit – James Edward (Dusty) Brogdon, Jr., v. Ford Motor Company – meaning that the automaker owes the family of a deceased couple a whopping $2.5 billion – the largest such sum in Georgia state history, second only to its previous, aforementioned $1.7 billion dollar verdict. This particular crash occurred back in 2022, when a 2015 Ford Super Duty hit a driveway drainage culvert, went airborne, and rolled over onto its roof, crushing and killing the occupants.
At that time, Ford stated that it would appeal this verdict, and now, it’s asking the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia (Columbus Division) for a new trial, according to Car Complaints. The $2.5 billion dollar judgement in Ford’s previous lawsuit was recently vacated, which – according to The Blue Oval – warrants such a move. “This extraneous information unfairly prejudiced Ford; requires a full evidentiary examination by the Court; and – based on the information Ford has received from jurors – necessitates a new trial for Ford,” the company stated in its motion.
Ford also claims that the previous, $1.7 billion judgment had an unfair influence on this newer case, even providing text messages between jurors as evidence. The automaker maintains that the collapsed roof on the Super Duty in question wasn’t the reason both of its occupants perished in the crash, but rather, points to injuries suffered by both in its frontal collision, as well as cardiac arrest suffered by the driver before the crash occurred.
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