Uploaded December 2018 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
A U.S. Air Force Captain sitting at a red light on his motorcycle suffered catastrophic injuries after he was hit by a truck driven by a man who later alleged to be experiencing a seizure. After running over the Captain, the Defendant stopped for 23 seconds before attempting to flee the scene with the Captain still pinned beneath his truck.
The Captain was dragged with his leg pressed into the asphalt under his motorcycle for more than the distance of a football field before other drivers blocked the Defendant from entering the highway. He was arrested at the scene and charged with Felony Hit and Run.
The Plaintiff lost almost 40 percent of his blood during the horrific incident as he suffered near-fatal injuries to his right leg. He would undergo numerous surgeries to save his leg from amputation, but skin and muscle would be removed from other parts of his body to rebuild his disfigured limb. Heading into trial, the Captain would still require many more additional surgeries in the future, and he continues to face the possibility of losing his leg, which must be monitored for the rest of his life.
The Defendant claimed to have suffered an epileptic seizure moments before the impact and admitted to having a long history of epileptic “breakthrough” seizures that would trigger without warning, at any time, and with no responsiveness to medications. The Defendant’s treating physician later testified that she had instructed the Defendant not to drive due to his dangerous and unpredictable medical condition.
SoCal Gas, the employer of the Defendant driver, admitted liability but disputed the Captain’s future medical expenses. The Defense argued that the Captain and his wife only deserved $9M in total damages.
Panish Shea & Boyle needed a powerful visual presentation that would make jurors and the Defense attorneys understand the devastating totality of their client’s experience, suffering, and lifetime of surgical recovery. We built the Plaintiff attorneys a Digital Injury Summary that would:
Illustrate the Captain’s numerous injuries, with emphasis on the leg.
Animate the many surgeries the Plaintiff underwent before trial.
Summarize the Plaintiff’s current condition (at trial) throughout his entire body.
Show the future surgeries the Captain would still need to undergo as a result of the collision.
The following visual presentation convinced jurors to award a $41,864,102 verdict to the Captain and his wife, which included $35M for past and future pain and suffering, $3.9M for past and future medical expenses, $957K for past and future lost income, and $2M to reimburse the Captain’s wife for loss of consortium. The jury also decided that punitive damages should be added, but the Defense settled for $46M before that verdict was announced.
A U.S. Air Force Captain sitting at a red light on his motorcycle suffered catastrophic injuries after he was hit by a truck driven by a man who later alleged to be experiencing a seizure. After running over the Captain, the Defendant stopped for 23 seconds before attempting to flee the scene with the Captain still pinned beneath his truck.
The Captain was dragged with his leg pressed into the asphalt under his motorcycle for more than the distance of a football field before other drivers blocked the Defendant from entering the highway. He was arrested at the scene and charged with Felony Hit and Run.
The Plaintiff lost almost 40 percent of his blood during the horrific incident as he suffered near-fatal injuries to his right leg. He would undergo numerous surgeries to save his leg from amputation, but skin and muscle would be removed from other parts of his body to rebuild his disfigured limb. Heading into trial, the Captain would still require many more additional surgeries in the future, and he continues to face the possibility of losing his leg, which must be monitored for the rest of his life.
The Defendant claimed to have suffered an epileptic seizure moments before the impact and admitted to having a long history of epileptic “breakthrough” seizures that would trigger without warning, at any time, and with no responsiveness to medications. The Defendant’s treating physician later testified that she had instructed the Defendant not to drive due to his dangerous and unpredictable medical condition.
SoCal Gas, the employer of the Defendant driver, admitted liability but disputed the Captain’s future medical expenses. The Defense argued that the Captain and his wife only deserved $9M in total damages.
Panish Shea & Boyle needed a powerful visual presentation that would make jurors and the Defense attorneys understand the devastating totality of their client’s experience, suffering, and lifetime of surgical recovery. We built the Plaintiff attorneys a Digital Injury Summary that would:
Illustrate the Captain’s numerous injuries, with emphasis on the leg.
Animate the many surgeries the Plaintiff underwent before trial.
Summarize the Plaintiff’s current condition (at trial) throughout his entire body.
Show the future surgeries the Captain would still need to undergo as a result of the collision.
The following visual presentation convinced jurors to award a $41,864,102 verdict to the Captain and his wife, which included $35M for past and future pain and suffering, $3.9M for past and future medical expenses, $957K for past and future lost income, and $2M to reimburse the Captain’s wife for loss of consortium. The jury also decided that punitive damages should be added, but the Defense settled for $46M before that verdict was announced.
