UCI to Pay $4.5 Million-Plus to Student Left Brain Damaged in Bicycle Accident

A student who was in a coma for five months after being struck by a bicyclist on a campus sidewalk settled a claim against UC Irvine for at least $4.5 million Monday.

James A. Fitzgerald, now 22, was a junior hoping to follow his father in a legal career before a fellow student struck him from behind on Nov. 15, 1985.

Fitzgerald suffered brain damage and is paralyzed in both legs and one arm. His recovery has been “miraculous,” although he will never be able to work, care for himself or “carry on a conversation,” according to his lawyer.

UCI lawyers denied any liability in the settlement, which was reached after discussions before Orange County Superior Court Judge James R. Ross. A campus committee formed after the Fitzgerald tragedy recommended a battery of bicycle use and speed restrictions, which were imposed campuswide last fall, according to a UCI spokeswoman.

Fitzgerald has been hospitalized in Marin County since the accident. He is now in a rehabilitative institution where medical costs run $30,000 a month, according to his Los Angeles attorney, George R. Royce.

“He has had more success than was initially ever hoped for,” Royce said. “He recognizes his parents now. His speech is very limited. He can answer simple questions. But his memory is a terrible problem.”

The bicycle rider was a student, Trung Q. Pham, who had no substantial assets and no insurance. Witnesses told campus police that he was riding rapidly when he ran into Fitzgerald from behind. Fitzgerald fell to the sidewalk, striking his head.

A swelling in the brain left him in a coma for five months.

“The doctors felt there was very little hope for recovery,” Royce said.

“Everybody was pessimistic that he would never come out of it, but his parents never gave up hope,” Royce said. “They were unbelievable. They visited him in the hospital every single day.”

His parents, James and Carol Fitzgerald, plan to remodel their Novato home so that they can care for the young victim. The Fitzgeralds, who have three other children, could not be reached for comment.

The accident occurred as Fitzgerald walked to class near the Humanities Building on the outer circle ring, a broad nonvehicular pathway.

Royce alleged that the problem of mixing bicyclists and pedestrians had been studied previously by campus groups but that no remedial action was taken. Other University of California campuses segregate foot and bike traffic in some areas, and UCI should have done the same, according to the Fitzgerald lawsuit.

In the suit, Fitzgerald alleged that UCI was negligent in allowing “a known dangerous condition”--the mix of pedestrian and bike traffic. The problem was that “everybody thought they had the right of way,” according to Royce. One bike-pedestrian accident had been reported before the Fitzgerald tragedy, and none since, said Linda Granell, UCI director of public information.

A bicycle safety committee was formed after the accident and suggested a series of changes that went into effect last fall, Granell said. New rules include a maximum bike speed limit of 10 m.p.h. on areas where there is mixed traffic, a maximum 25 m.p.h. limit for bikes on streets with vehicular traffic, requirements that bikes be ridden only on the right side of the pavement and that bikes be walked in areas of heavy pedestrian use.

There are 14,500 students on campus. Several hundred bicyclists ride on campus byways each day, according to Granell.

Hundreds of signs marking areas where bikes are prohibited were posted, according to Royce.

While admitting no negligence on the part of UCI, the campus insurer, Insurance Co. of North America, agreed Monday to substantial lifetime payments to Fitzgerald.

The present value of the settlement is $4.5 million. Should Fitzgerald’s lifetime approach normal life expectancy, the payments could total $10 million.

The complicated deal calls for a $1.7-million payment to the Fitzgeralds on July 3, $576,000 in one year plus three separate annuities providing a monthly income for life.

The insurer began medical payments last November, long before the formal legal settlement, according to Royce. Fitzgerald is now receiving eight hours of therapy daily.