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Miles v. Ford Motor Company3/13/1996
March 13, 1996
O P I N I O N
The plaintiffs Susan Renae Miles, individually and as next friend of minors Willie Searcy and Jermaine Searcy, and Kenneth Miles sued Ford Motor Company and Douglas Stanley, Jr., doing business as Doug Stanley Ford, to recover damages for personal injuries suffered by Willie Searcy as a result of a two-car collision that occurred in Dallas County. The plaintiffs asserted liability on the basis of defective product, negligence, and breach of warranties, alleging that a faulty seat belt caused Willie Searcy's injuries. Before trial, the court granted Ford and Stanley's summary judgement motion on the loss of consortium claims of Kenneth Miles, Willie's stepfather, and Willie's brother Jermaine. The jurors found for the plaintiffs on all claims against Ford but not against Stanley, and awarded $30 million compensatory damages. The jurors also found that Ford had acted with gross negligence and malice, and awarded exemplary damages of $10 million.
Both sides appeal. Ford and Stanley contend that the trial court erred in refusing to transfer venue to Dallas County from Rusk County; in allowing the plaintiffs to present certain expert testimony and refusing to allow Ford to present contradicting expert testimony; in admitting the plaintiffs' test evidence and excluding the defense's test; in admitting voluminous exhibits en masse without individually considering authenticity, hearsay, and relevance, and without balancing their probative value against possible prejudice and juror confusion; by instructing the jurors that Ford had a duty to "prevent all unnecessary and avoidable injuries"; in rendering judgement and in failing to grant Ford's motion for new trial because the jurors' liability findings were fatally conflicting; and in denying Ford's motion for new trial because the evidence was factually insufficient to support the jury's liability and punitive damage findings.
The plaintiffs contend that they should have a new trial on their claims against Stanley because the jury's failure to find liability against Stanley was against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence and was manifestly unjust, and that the trial court erred in granting Ford and Stanley's motion for partial summary judgment on plaintiffs' loss of consortium claims.
Because we find factually insufficient evidence to support the findings of gross negligence and malice, we will reverse the judgment and remand the cause for a new trial on the issues of gross negligence and malice. In all other respects, we will affirm the judgment.
Susan Miles is Willie and Jermaine Searcy's mother, and her husband Kenneth Miles is their stepfather. Willie was fourteen and Jermaine was twelve in April of 1993, the time of the collision. The collision occurred when the 1988 Ford Ranger pickup Kenneth Miles was driving struck a Mercury Cougar that had crossed the median into the truck's path. Kenneth Miles and Willie were wearing seat belts and shoulder harnesses, and Jermaine was wearing a lap belt only.
Kenneth Miles and Jermaine were injured, but generally recovered. Willie suffered a spinal cord injury rendering him quadriplegic. He needs round-the-clock care and can breathe only with the help of a ventilator. Willie's injuries form the basis of the suit.
The plaintiffs' theory was that, some time before the collision, Willie, who was riding on the right passenger side, leaned forward to pick up trash on the floorboard, which caused the webbing on his shoulder harness to spool out, creating six to eight inches of slack. A device on the truck called a "tension eliminator" prevented the webbing from rewinding onto the spool,
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