Lawsuit Filed for Third Fatal Collision for Driver on Duty
Posted on Jan 3, 2011 12:10pm PST
Silicon Valley's Mercury News has reported that an on-duty truck driver has been the common denominator in three fatal accidents, and though the California Highway Patrol has exonerated him each time, the family of the latest victim has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against him and his employer.
The Los Altos Hills woman killed, 47-year-old Lauren Perdriau Ward, was run over by a truck driven by Gabriel Manzur Vera, while traveling on her bicycle on November 4 on Alpine Road near the Portola Valley.
The complaint was filed in San Mateo County Superior Court on December 20 - the same day the California Highway Patrol released their report concluding Vera was not at fault.
The suit not only names Vera as a defendant but also the company he works for: Randazzo Enterprises. It claims that Vera drove directly into the path of Ward's bicycle and the subsequent crash was a result of Vera's negligence alone.
According to CHP records, both Vera, and his employers, paid $1.5 million in a similar lawsuit - a 2007 collision between Vera and a bicycle in Santa Cruz also resulted in the cyclist's wrongful death.
CHP investigators have not found Vera at fault in a total of three fatal collisions he has been involved in while on the job.
The current CHP report states that Ward "unsafely turned" when she rode her bicycle on the "immediate left" of the truck - while each were traveling in the same right lane of the road. She, and her Trek brand bicycle, disappeared under the truck's second axle.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Vera's report to investigators states that he was veering right from the right westbound lane, and he entered the southbound lane of Interstate 280. He said he used his right turn indicator and his right rear view mirror before making the turn. Then he turned his head forward.
He stopped when her felt a "bump" in the road.
Officer Art Montiel, the CHP agency spokesperson, said that even though there were no witnesses they determined that it was Ward that made the fatal unsafe maneuver.
The lawsuit states, "Suddenly and without warning, defendant Gabriel Manzur Vera ... negligently drove the aforementioned tractor and trailer rig directly into the path of Lauren Ward's bicycle thereby violating Lauren Ward's right-of-way, causing Lauren Ward's death at approximately 3:45 p.m."
John Feder, the Ward family attorney said of the lawsuit, "While the CHP was conducting its investigation, we brought in scientists and other experts to evaluate the circumstances surrounding Lauren's tragic death, and the team disagrees with the CHP's conclusion as to the cause. As a result, (her husband) Bob and the Ward children would like a jury to hear the evidence and decide."
The suit is seeking an undisclosed sum for non-economic and economic losses.
The other two accidents involving Vera included a 2007 incident that took the life of John Myslin, a teacher at Pacific Collegiate School, and the 2003 death of Annette McDaniel, who struck his rig head-on.
If you have lost a family member due to a wrongful death, click here to contact a personal injury lawyer from our directory that specializes in wrongful death cases.