Jeep case could spur more suits

DETROIT – The stunning $150 million jury verdict in a Georgia case involving a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee is likely to spell more legal trouble for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

The verdict, rendered after a dramatic two-week trial, has already prompted renewed pressure on government regulators to take another look at Jeep SUVs with rear-mounted fuel tanks.

“We were waiting to see the results of that case,” Detroit-area attorney Gerald Thurswell said Friday.

Thurswell is the attorney for the family of Kayla White, who died in a crash last year after her Jeep Liberty was rear-ended by a Cadillac.

On Thursday, jurors in Decatur County in Georgia ruled that the automaker “acted with wanton disregard for human life in the design of the 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee.”

Even though the case only involves one victim, it has been watched closely by the media and plaintiffs’ attorneys. Last year, a massive recall of more than 2.5 million cars along with congressional hearings and myriad lawsuits were prompted by a lawsuit settled by General Motors over a crash that killed pediatric nurse Brooke Melton.

A key difference between GM’s ignition switch crisis and the investigation into Jeep’s fuel tanks is that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already investigated the Jeep SUVs and a recall has been underway since 2013.

Remington Walden, of Bainbridge, Georgia, was killed when the Jeep driven by his aunt was hit from behind by a pickup truck in March 2012. The fuel tank leaked, engulfing the Jeep in flames and killing the boy.

“I think the evidence had to be overwhelming that Chrysler was at fault for willful, wanton disregard for human life,” Thurswell said Friday. “I think that our case is very similar to the case in Georgia, and we would expect a similar result.”

The 23-year-old White, who was eight months pregnant, was on her way to work when traffic slowed and her Jeep Liberty was rear-ended by a Cadillac. The Jeep flipped over and exploded in flames, killing the woman.

The Auburn Hills automaker said White’s death was “caused by a distracted driver who slammed into the rear of her vehicle at highway speed and not by a defect in the Jeep Liberty.”

White’s Jeep Liberty was among 1.56 million Jeep vehicles the automaker agreed to recall in 2013 so it could reinforce the rear-mounted fuel tanks with a trailer hitch for additional protection.

According to the NHTSA, a rear-mounted tank, without any reinforcement, has little structure to protect it if struck from behind. In crashes, the tanks are susceptible to punctures and fires, the agency has said.