$5.4 Million Settlement - Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas
Partner Tom Sacchetta secured a 5.4 million dollar verdict on behalf of a bicyclist who suffered traumatic brain injury as a result of a bicycle accident. Through thorough investigation, it was determined the roadway on which the bicyclist was riding, was defective in that there was a deviation in the road surface resulting from previous roadway repair. The defect in the roadway was in the precise area where a bicyclist would be legally operating his or her bicycle. Not only were we able to develop a strong argument of negligence against the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, but with the use of experts in the field of neurology, neuropsychology, life care planning and vocational evaluation, Tom was able to demonstrate the tremendous economic and non-economic impact that this injury had upon our client and his family.
Ultimately, following a lengthy trial, the jury returned a verdict in the amount of 5.4 million dollars, finding that PennDOT had been negligent in their inspection and maintenance of the roadway. At no time, did the defendants make any offer of settlement in the case.
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Delco Jury Awards $5.4M to Brain-Damaged Cyclist
×Max Mitchell
A Delaware County jury has awarded more than $5.4 million to a man who suffered brain damage after falling off his bicycle because of an alleged road defect.
According to the plaintiffs’ attorney, Thomas F. Sacchetta of Sacchetta and Baldino, after four days of trial and two hours of deliberations, the jury in Carletti v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania awarded $5.46 million to David Carletti and his wife, Brenda Carletti, over claims that the patch of road where he fell was dangerous. The award included nearly $2.5 million in medical expenses and lost wages, as well as $2 million in pain and suffering to David Carletti and $1 million for Brenda Carletti’s loss of consortium claim.
The state government was the only defendant at trial. Although state law caps recovery for civil damages against state agencies at $250,000, Sacchetta said the total recovery from Pennsylvania will be $500,000 since both of the Carlettis will recover the maximum $250,000 for their claims.
“Delaware County is considered a very conservative county, but I still find, especially since I’m a local Delaware County attorney, that with the right case Delaware County juries will still give significant verdicts,” Sacchetta said.
According to David Carletti’s pretrial motion, the fall occurred in May 2012, when he was riding his bike on West Sproul Road in Springfield Township. The memo said Carletti hit a patch in the road, which he argued constituted a danger defect that ejected him from his bike. He landed on his head, the memo said.
Carletti, who was in his late 50s at the time of the accident, sued both Pennsylvania and the manufacturer of the bike helmet he was wearing, but, according to Sacchetta, that defendant settled confidentially. The claims against the state included negligent design and failure to maintain the road.
According to the pretrial memo, the fall caused a subarachnoid hemorrhage that damaged his brain and led to post-traumatic seizure disorder. He also suffered broken ribs, and a broken vertebra. Emergency personnel were immediately called to the scene, and he was taken to Crozer Regional Trauma Center, where he stayed for three weeks.
Carletti received outpatient therapy, but has since been hospitalized several times with seizure-related injuries, the memo said.
Pennsylvania disputed that any defect in the road caused Carletti’s crash. In its pretrial memo, which was filed by Senior Deputy Attorney General Jane H. Fisher, it said that two independent witnesses traveling in the opposite direction at the time of Carletti’s fall did not know what defect Carletti would have come into contact with.
According to Sacchetta, his accident reconstruction expert, Shawn Gyorke, was integral in overcoming that defense.
“[Carletti] had brain damage. He doesn’t remember anything, but the accident reconstruction expert was very compelling,” Sacchetta said, noting that one of the jurors told him Gyorke was his most compelling witness in the case. “We were obviously thankful the jurors saw the case the way we did.”
The judge who presided over the trial was Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Charles Burr.
The press office for the state attorney general did not return a request for comment Thursday afternoon.
According to the plaintiffs’ attorney, Thomas F. Sacchetta of Sacchetta and Baldino, after four days of trial and two hours of deliberations, the jury in Carletti v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania awarded $5.46 million to David Carletti and his wife, Brenda Carletti, over claims that the patch of road where he fell was dangerous. The award included nearly $2.5 million in medical expenses and lost wages, as well as $2 million in pain and suffering to David Carletti and $1 million for Brenda Carletti’s loss of consortium claim.
The state government was the only defendant at trial. Although state law caps recovery for civil damages against state agencies at $250,000, Sacchetta said the total recovery from Pennsylvania will be $500,000 since both of the Carlettis will recover the maximum $250,000 for their claims.
“Delaware County is considered a very conservative county, but I still find, especially since I’m a local Delaware County attorney, that with the right case Delaware County juries will still give significant verdicts,” Sacchetta said.
According to David Carletti’s pretrial motion, the fall occurred in May 2012, when he was riding his bike on West Sproul Road in Springfield Township. The memo said Carletti hit a patch in the road, which he argued constituted a danger defect that ejected him from his bike. He landed on his head, the memo said.
Carletti, who was in his late 50s at the time of the accident, sued both Pennsylvania and the manufacturer of the bike helmet he was wearing, but, according to Sacchetta, that defendant settled confidentially. The claims against the state included negligent design and failure to maintain the road.
According to the pretrial memo, the fall caused a subarachnoid hemorrhage that damaged his brain and led to post-traumatic seizure disorder. He also suffered broken ribs, and a broken vertebra. Emergency personnel were immediately called to the scene, and he was taken to Crozer Regional Trauma Center, where he stayed for three weeks.
Carletti received outpatient therapy, but has since been hospitalized several times with seizure-related injuries, the memo said.
Pennsylvania disputed that any defect in the road caused Carletti’s crash. In its pretrial memo, which was filed by Senior Deputy Attorney General Jane H. Fisher, it said that two independent witnesses traveling in the opposite direction at the time of Carletti’s fall did not know what defect Carletti would have come into contact with.
According to Sacchetta, his accident reconstruction expert, Shawn Gyorke, was integral in overcoming that defense.
“[Carletti] had brain damage. He doesn’t remember anything, but the accident reconstruction expert was very compelling,” Sacchetta said, noting that one of the jurors told him Gyorke was his most compelling witness in the case. “We were obviously thankful the jurors saw the case the way we did.”
The judge who presided over the trial was Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Charles Burr.
The press office for the state attorney general did not return a request for comment Thursday afternoon.
Jury verdict $600,000.00 - Delaware County Court of Common Pleas
Jury verdict $600,000.00 (including $350,000.00 compensatory and $250,000.00 punitive damages) in favor of an individual who was pushed from his bicycle into moving traffic, sustaining significant injuries to his leg.
