Trial Magazine

Kristie Lee Juandiego was driving a sedan with her two minor sons, including her 2-week-old son, S.S.J., who was in a car seat in the vehicle’s second row. As Juandiego was stopped waiting to turn left, Joshua Perkins, driving a pickup truck for Sanderson Farms., Inc., struck the sedan at 57 mph. The impact pushed the sedan into an oncoming van.

S.S.J. suffered a skull fracture and massive brain damage, including an extensive subarachnoid hemorrhage, a subdural hematoma in the inferior posterior fossa, and communicating hydrocephalus—increased fluid in the ventricles of the brain.

The injury resulted in the death of one-half of his brain in one hemisphere and about one-third of his brain in the other hemisphere. He also suffered a collapsed lung. He underwent emergency surgery to evacuate the hematoma, relieve pressure on his brain, and repair his lung.

Juandiego, 24, suffered a compound fracture of the left arm and underwent open reduction internal fixation. She also suffered bystander emotional distress from witnessing her baby’s injuries.

Juandiego’s other son sustained minor scratches to his neck.

Juandiego, individually and on behalf of her sons, sued Sanderson Farms and Perkins. She alleged that Perkins failed to: keep a proper lookout, maintain a safe following distance, control his speed, and timely brake or swerve to avoid the collision.

The plaintiffs were prepared to show that although Perkins gave multiple accounts of how the crash happened, the most credible version was the one he allegedly told his girlfriend—that he fell asleep at the wheel. The plaintiffs were prepared to show that in the days before the incident, Perkins had worked long hours with an irregular schedule that disrupted his sleep cycle.

They also planned to show that Juandiego had been applying her brakes for 12 seconds prior to the impact and that Perkins—who had his cruise control set to 57 mph—struck the rear of her car without braking or slowing down.

In addition to vicarious liability, the plaintiffs also alleged that Sanderson Farms was liable for negligent hiring, training, supervision, retention, and entrustment. The plaintiffs contended that although Perkins’s license was in good standing when he was hired, it was suspended administratively for failure to submit to a breathalyzer test.

His license was later reinstated, but the plaintiffs alleged that the company’s employee screening process failed to detect the suspension. The plaintiffs’ trucking safety expert was prepared to testify that Sanderson failed to have adequate policies for monitoring and managing driver fatigue and failed to provide adequate training.

The plaintiffs were prepared to show that S.S.J. could not speak, walk, or crawl by 2. Their pediatric neurology expert was prepared to testify that S.S.J. will have substantial developmental disabilities and will never be able to live independently. Suit did not claim past medical expenses, but the plaintiffs’ life care planning expert was prepared to testify that the present value of S.S.J.’s future care totals about $9.33 million.

Sanderson stipulated that Perkins was negligent during the course and scope of his employment but denied that it was directly liable or that Perkins was grossly negligent.

The parties settled before trial for $27.5 million.

Citation: Juandiego v. Sanderson Farms, Inc., No. 2014-4295-4 (Tex. Dist. Ct. McLennan Cnty. Mar. 16, 2016).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Robert E. Ammons and April A. Strahan, both of Houston; and James R. Dunnam, Waco, Texas.

Plaintiff experts: Steve Irwin, accident reconstruction, Dallas; Carmen Daecher, trucking industry, Camp Hill, Pa.; Stewart B. Ater, pediatric neurology, and Susan Caudle, neuropsychology, both of Houston; and Joe G. Gonzales, life care planning, San Antonio, Texas.

Defense expert: Robert Krueger, trucking industry, Chicago.