Caltrans Ordered to Pay Survivors

A jury on Wednesday ordered Caltrans to pay $3.5 million in damages to the family of a motorist who died in a fiery collision, finding that the agency failed to provide adequate signs and lighting along a freeway construction zone in Fullerton.

The suit in Orange County Superior Court stems from a 1999 accident that killed Glendale resident Sarkis Kostanian, 34. He was driving home from his job at a chicken restaurant when his car was crushed beneath a gasoline tanker that burst into flames. The truck driver, engulfed in flames, also died in the wreck.

The crash closed the busy Santa Ana-Riverside freeway interchange for nearly a day and later prompted Caltrans to install larger speed limit signs and post an additional warning for motorists approaching the busy freeway connector.

Kostanian’s relatives alleged that Caltrans was largely responsible for the accident because it failed to properly light and mark the construction project, part of a $1-billion overhaul of the Santa Ana Freeway.

The family’s lawyer, Frank Pitre, argued that among other problems, drivers had too little time to slow from 55 mph, the normal highway speed, to 25 mph, the speed necessary to safely navigate the twisting interchange.

He also contended that Caltrans skimped on warning signs and that one of the warning signals was burned out at the time of the crash.

The lawsuit listed four defendants, but the jury found Caltrans was most at fault. The jury, however, also ordered the construction contractor, the truck driver and the trucking firm to pay additional damages of $3.5 million, making the total verdict roughly $7 million. Since the truck driver is dead, his portion of the judgment would be paid by his former employer, Pitre said.

Caltrans attorney Erick Solares said he was shocked by the verdict and maintained that the agency did nothing wrong at the construction site. He placed most of the blame on the driver of the gasoline truck, who lost control of the 5,000-gallon tanker. The truck then overturned, slid across four lanes of highway and pinned Kostanian’s Ford Crown Victoria against a concrete barrier.

“Had [the truck driver] been paying attention, he would have been able to negotiate that turn,” the Caltrans lawyer said. “I thought the driver was going to be found more liable. So many cars went through that area without an accident.”

Anait Zakoyan, Kostanian’s 27-year-old widow, wiped away tears as the verdict was read.

“I wish I was never here in the courtroom,” she said. “I wish my husband was here next to me. I don’t want this mistake to ever happen again to anyone else.”

The couple’s 5-year-old daughter, Amy, was also a plaintiff in the suit along with her mother.

Jurors said the case taught them how important roadway signs are and said Caltrans should have done a better job of guiding motorists through the interchange.

“You drive down the freeway every day and never even realize all the signs that are up,” said juror Gina Fisher of Fountain Valley. “They’re critical though.”

The jury found that Caltrans was 53% responsible for the crash, the construction contractor 10% and the truck driver and trucking firm 37%.

Records from the California Highway Patrol and Caltrans showed that during the three-year construction project, the interchange had a surge in accidents, many involving trucks.