$42.5 Million Verdict for Motorcyclist Left with Severe Brain Injury After Tesla Employee Made Illegal Turn

On an April morning in 2017, Christopher Dugan was riding his motorcycle on Rockville Road in Indianapolis when Kyle Kaszuba, a Tesla service manager, turned left across double yellow lines directly into his path. The collision was catastrophic.

Dugan, then 37 and a resident of Avon, Indiana, suffered a traumatic brain injury severe enough to leave him with the cognitive functioning of a child. He also sustained a partial foot amputation, skull and facial fractures, brain hemorrhage, pulmonary contusions, multiple leg fractures, and rib fractures. By the time the case reached trial nearly seven years later, he remained unable to manage his own finances, perform basic self-care, or work.

Lee Christie of what is now Christie Bell and Marshall served as co-counsel at trial alongside Nick Rowley and Karen Zahka of Trial Lawyers for Justice. The trial ran from March 4 through March 13, 2024, before Judge Marianne Vorhees. Tesla made no settlement offers throughout the litigation, reportedly declining amounts between $10 million and $20 million.

The jury assigned 70 percent of fault to Kaszuba and Tesla, and 30 percent to Dugan, on evidence that he had ridden without a helmet and that his speed contributed to the severity of the impact. Total damages found were $60,687,491. After applying Indiana's comparative fault reduction, the net judgment came to approximately $42.5 million, Courtroom View Network ranked it third on its list of the ten most impressive plaintiff verdicts of 2024 in the United States.

Tesla appealed, arguing that the trial judge communicated improperly with jurors during deliberations when a mistrial appeared possible. The Indiana Court of Appeals agreed and reversed the damages award, remanding the case for a new trial. As of mid-2026, the Indiana Supreme Court has accepted the case and is scheduled to hear oral arguments on June 30, 2026, on the threshold question of whether the 'going and coming' rule bars vicarious liability for Kaszuba's conduct as a matter of law. The $42.5 million judgment is not final while that appeal remains pending.