Date: 09-04-1999

Case Style: Fairley Mullins, Administrator of the Estate of Thomas G. Mullins and James Darin Thornberry v. Worldwide Equipment, Inc. and Mack Trucks, Inc.

Case Number: 93-CI-000234

Judge: Douglas C. Combs, Jr.

Court: Circuit Court, Knott County, Kentucky

Plaintiff's Attorney: Peter Perlman, Lexington, Kentucky for Fairly Mullins, Administrator of the Estate of Thomas G. Mullins.

Stephen M. O'Brien, III and Louis W. Rom, Lexington, Kentucky for James Darin Thornsberry.

Defendant's Attorney: William A. Watson, Middleboro, Kentucky for Worldwide Equipment, Inc.

Lionel A. Hawse and Benjamin Cowgill, Jr. of Woodward, Hobson & Fulton, Lexington, Kentucky for Mack Trucks, Inc.

Description: Negligence and strict liability (products liability) claims - On January 24, 1993, Tommy Mullins crashed his pickup truck into the rear end of a coal truck on Highway 15 in Knott County, Kentucky. Mullins was killed and his passenger, Darin Thornsberry, was injured as a result of this collision. Just prior to the accident, the coal truck had been traveling a short distance ahead of Mullins, and had slowed down to make a left-hand turn. Mullins approached the truck at a closing speed of approximately thirty (30) miles per hour, colliding with the right-rear corner of the coal dump body as the truck began to turn left. Neither Mullins nor Thornsberry was wearing a seat belt upon impact. Mullins died of massive head injuries. Thornsberry hit the windshield and suffered a disk compression fracture of the spine.

In 1981, Mack manufactured the cab-chassis component of what ultimately was completed as a coal dump truck. A cab-chassis is considered an "incomplete vehicle."[fn1] In February 1981, the cab-chassis was purchased and delivered to Worldwide. Worldwide obtained, from a customer, a request for a coal dump truck and, in order to fulfill the customer's requirements, delivered the cab-chassis to R&S Truck Body, Inc. (R&S), a final-stage manufacturer. Worldwide's contract with R&S called for R&S to manufacture and install a coal dump body, and related hydraulic systems.

R&S completed the vehicle in August 1981. Due to the addition of the coal dump body, the completed vehicle had an overhang on the rear of the truck. The presence of the overhang triggered application of 49 C.F.R. § 393.86, as adopted by Kentucky in 601 KAR 1:005 § 2 (7). These administrative regulations require the installation of a rear underride guard, or ICC bumper, prior to the vehicle being placed into service.[fn2] No such device was either requested by Worldwide or installed by R&S.

Following completion in August 1981, the coal dump truck was sold by Worldwide to its customer for whom the vehicle had been prepared. The truck was returned to Worldwide in January 1989 when the original purchaser traded it in on another vehicle. The following month, in February 1989, Patricia Cook, owner of M&R Trucking, Inc. (M&R), bought the used coal truck from Worldwide. The vehicle retained the coal dump body manufactured and installed by R&S both at the time Cook purchased it, in 1989, and the day of the accident, January 24, 1993. No rear underride guard had ever been installed.

Outcome: The jury rejected Mullins' and Thornsberry's claim against Taylor, and found that Taylor was not at fault in causing the collision. Rather, the jury assessed sixty percent (60%) fault to Mullins. Since M&R failed to equip the truck with an ICC bumper pursuant to state and federal regulations, the trial court directed a against it based on this violation. The jury found M&R five percent (5%) at fault for Mullins' death and Thornsberry's injuries.

The jury determined: (1) R&S was negligent in the design, manufacture, distribution and sale of the coal truck; (2) the coal truck was defective and unreasonably dangerous; and, (3) R&S had failed to warn of the dangerous condition. The jury apportioned fifteen percent (15%) fault to R&S in causing Mullins' death and twenty-five percent (25%) fault for Thornsberry's injuries.

The jury determined that Worldwide sold the truck as a defective product, unreasonably dangerous as a result of not being properly supplied with the ICC bumper, and further concluded Worldwide breached its duty of ordinary care in the design, manufacture, distribution and sale of the coal dump truck. The jury, additionally, determined Worldwide failed to warn of the dangerous condition and assessed fifteen percent (15%) fault to Worldwide in causing Mullins' death. Worldwide moved the court for judgment notwithstanding the , which was denied.

With respect to Mack, the jury concluded Mack's cab-chassis was neither a defective product nor unreasonably dangerous. It further determined Mack had not breached the duty of ordinary care in the cab-chassis' design, manufacture, distribution and sale. However, the jury did return a verdict against Mack under a duty to warn instruction. On this basis, it held Mack five percent (5%) at fault for the death of Mullins and ten percent (10%) at fault for the injuries sustained by Thornsberry. Moreover, the jury, having found Mack acted toward Mullins and Thornsberry with malice, awarded $50,000 in punitive damages to the Mullins estate and $25,000 in punitive damages to Thornsberry. The trial court denied Mack's motion for judgment notwithstanding the .

Plaintiff's Experts: Unknown

Defendant's Experts: Unknown

Comments: Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded by the Kentucky Court of Appeals on April 16, 1999. The date shown above is the date of the appellate court decision and not the trial date.