Trial Magazine

Chris Chandler, 62, was walking his bicycle through a marked crosswalk at a busy, uncontrolled intersection when a car fatally struck him. Chandler is survived by his wife and three adult daughters.

Chandler’s survivors sued the state of California, alleging the crosswalk was unsafe because it blocked pedestrians’ view of oncoming traffic and that approaching motorists, in turn, could not adequately see the crosswalk. Testimony from the state employee primarily responsible for crosswalk safety indicated that the state failed to address this crosswalk’s possible dangers because there had not yet been four deaths or injuries there.

Suit also named the driver who hit Chandler. The plaintiffs settled with the driver before trial for his $300,000 policy limits. Suit did not claim lost income.

A jury awarded $9.5 million after the first trial ended in a hung jury, finding the state 90 percent liable and the nonparty driver 10 percent liable.

Citation: Chandler v. State, No. CIV501071 (Cal. Super. Ct. San Mateo Cnty. July 25, 2016).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Michael S. Danko and Claire Choo, both of Redwood Shores, Calif.

Plaintiff experts: William Kunzman, traffic engineering, Los Angeles; and Mike Braun, accident reconstruction, Livermore, Calif.