San Diego
A San Diego County Superior Court jury awarded nearly $1.9 million late Tuesday to a San Diego man afflicted with cerebral palsy who was injured when a defective wheelchair lift on a city bus dumped him onto a street corner.
Friends and relatives testified that the health of Carl Richmond, 50, deteriorated after the accident in June, 1982, leaving him in constant pain, in need of 24-hour nursing care, and suffering from a sleep disorder.
Attorneys for Environmental Equipment Corp. of San Leandro, manufacturers of the lift, said Wednesday they will seek a new trial, arguing that the verdict was excessive and based solely on sympathy for Richmond, attorney H.R. Hollywood said.
Defense lawyers had acknowledged the manufacturing firm’s liability for the accident but contended that Richmond’s deterioration stemmed from the natural course of cerebral palsy, not from the accident. They asked the jury to return a $7,000 verdict.
Philip M. Cohen, Richmond’s attorney, requested a judgment of $6 million for the disabled man, who turned 50 Wednesday.
Judge Carlos A. Cazares ruled that San Diego Transit Corp., operator of the city bus line, has no liability in the accident.
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