Trial Magazine

Noemi Mendez, 15, was walking home from school with her older brother, Elias. As they were crossing a street in the crosswalk, Cristian Salinas Munoz, driving a tractor-trailer, began turning right into the intersection. The truck struck Noemi, and the trailer’s rear wheels rolled over her head. She died at the scene, survived by Elias, her parents, and an older sister. Elias, who was 18 at the time, suffered severe emotional distress from witnessing his sister’s fatal injuries.

At the time of the incident, Munoz was in the course and scope of his job with Transportes Grimaldo Montes, a trucking company. The company’s owner, Jose Alberto Grimaldo Lopez, owned the tractor-trailer.

Noemi’s family sued Munoz, Transportes Grimaldo Montes, and Lopez, alleging that Munoz was negligent and failed to yield to pedestrians in the ­crosswalk. The plaintiffs asserted that Noemi and Elias entered the intersection on a green light with a pedestrian “walk” signal and that they were already well into the intersection when Munoz struck Noemi.

The parties stipulated that Munoz was in the course and scope of his job.

The parties presented a surveillance video recorded by a corner convenience store, which captured some of the events at a distance. Although the video was of poor quality, the plaintiffs contended that it showed that Noemi and her brother arrived at the intersection at least 30 seconds before Munoz and that they were in the intersection for about 10 seconds before Munoz entered.

The defendants cited the police report, which concluded that Noemi was at fault based on an eyewitness’s statement that the pedestrian signal was red and that Noemi was on her cell phone. Munoz testified that before entering the intersection, he saw Noemi looking toward him and talking on her cell phone. Munoz claimed that because he saw a red blinking pedestrian light and noted that Noemi and Elias had stopped at the corner, he believed it was safe to begin turning.

The plaintiffs countered with testimony from Elias, who stated that he and his sister had entered the intersection on a green pedestrian “walk” sign.

The jury found that Munoz was 100 percent at fault and awarded $10.75 million. The award included $4 million to Elias for negligent infliction of emotional distress and $3.5 million to Noemi’s mother and $3.25 million to her father for wrongful death damages.

Citation: Mendez v. City of San Diego, No. 37-2014-00037263-CU-PA-CTL (Cal. Super. Ct. San Diego Cnty. Feb. 8, 2017).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members C. Michael Alder and Laura F. Sedrish, both of Los Angeles; and AAJ member Mike Kazerouni, Costa Mesa, Calif.

Plaintiff experts: V. Herbert, trucking industry practices, Quincy, Calif.; David King, accident reconstruction, Los Angeles; and Alison Vredenburgh, human factors, San Diego.

Defense experts: Larry Miller, trucking industry practices, La Verne, Calif.; Edward Fatzinger Jr., accident reconstruction, Torrance, Calif.; and Joseph Cohen, human factors, San Diego.