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Defendant's Attorney: Gregory Turner Jones, Michael D Barnes, Roger Todd Wooten

Description: Texarkana, Arkansas personal injury truck wreck lawyers represented Plaintiffs who sued Defendants on auto negligence theories claiming to have suffered more than $75,000 in damages and/or injuries as a direct result of the failure to exercise due care in the operation of a motor vehicle.

This wrongful death and survival action arose out of an August 2, 2018, two-vehicle accident that took place in Howard County, Arkansas. Defendant Eric James Cornell Thomas failed to obey a stop sign while driving a tractor trailer in the course and scope of his employment with Defendant McElroy Truck Lines, Inc. The tractor Mr. Thomas was operating collided with a truck driven by William Bobby Wray Edwards, in which Mr. Edwards' daughter, Arleigh, and stepson, Peyton, were riding. Arleigh was ejected from the cab of the pickup during the accident.

Mr. Edwards and Arleigh were killed as a result of the accident.

At the time of the collision, Arleigh was two years old and weighed less than sixty pounds. Although a child safety seat was located in the pickup on the date of the accident, it is undisputed that Arleigh was not restrained in any child passenger safety seat or any other passenger restraint system at the time of the collision. Mr. Edwards was also not wearing any passenger restraint device at the time of the accident.

For the purposes of this civil action, Defendant Thomas admits he was negligent in running the stop sign and that his negligence was the cause of the collision between the tractor trailer and the pickup. Defendant McElroy admits the same and admits it is vicariously liable for any injuries proximately caused by Mr. Thomas' negligence. However, both Defendants allege fault on the part of Mr. Edwards for failing to secure Arleigh in a child passenger safety seat as a defense in this action. Defendants seek to offer expert testimony at trial showing that if Arleigh had been properly restrained in a child safety device, she would not have been ejected from the pickup and would have survived the incident.

Plaintiffs previously filed a Motion for Summary Judgment arguing that Defendants' apportionment of fault defense is barred by Arkansas's Child Passenger Protection Act (“CPPA”), which prohibits parties from offering the failure to provide or use a child safety restraint as evidence of comparative or contributory negligence. (ECF No. 60). The Court denied the motion on the grounds that there was a genuine issue of material fact regarding whether Arleigh weighed sixty pounds, which would determine whether she was required to be secured in a child safety seat under the CPPA.[1] (ECF No. 86). However, the Court also noted that “if subsequent evidenceshows that Arleigh weighed less than sixty pounds at the time of the incident, the Court is unlikely to let Defendants argue at trial for apportionment of fault[.]” (ECF No. 86). It is now undisputed that Arleigh weighed less than sixty pounds. (ECF No. 171, ¶ 3).

In the Order denying Plaintiffs' original summary judgment motion, the Court declined to rule on Defendants' separate argument that the CPPA was unconstitutional under Arkansas law. Instead, the Court certified the following question to be answered by the Arkansas Supreme Court:

Under the facts of this case, whether Ark. Code Ann. § 27-34-106(a) violates the separation-of-powers doctrine under article 4, section 2, and Amendment 80, section 3, of the Arkansas Constitution.

The Arkansas Supreme Court held that the CPPA was not unconstitutional. See Edwards v. Thomas, 625 S.W.3d 226 (Ark. 2021).

After the Arkansas Supreme Court rendered its decision, Defendants filed an Amended Answer that again alleged defenses premised on the fact that Arleigh was not restrained in a child safety device at the time of the accident. Defendants specifically present the following defenses: (1) Mr. Edwards is at fault for Arleigh's death because he failed to secure Arleigh in a child safety restraint; (2) the failure to secure Arleigh in a child safety restraint was the proximate cause of Arleigh's death; and (3) claims relating to Arleigh's death are barred by the doctrine of failure to mitigate damages because Arleigh was not properly secured in a child safety restraint. (ECF No. 131). Plaintiffs have again moved for summary judgment with respect to each defense on the grounds that the CPPA precludes Defendants from introducing evidence that Arleigh was not restrained in a child safety device at the time of the accident.

All car wreck cases have the same three elements: (1) negligence, (2) damages and/or injuries, and (3) a direct causal relationship between the failure on the part of the Defendant to exercise due care.

Outcome: 07/27/2022 247 STIPULATION of Dismissal by McElroy Truck Lines, Inc., Eric James Cornell Thomas. (Jones, Gregory) (Entered: 07/27/2022)
07/28/2022 248 ORDER OF DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE. Signed by Honorable Susan O. Hickey on July 28, 2022.(mll) (Entered: 07/28/2022)

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