$24 Million Verdict for Girl Run Over by Father's Big Rig Was Largest Personal-Injury Award in Sacramento County History

In November 2004, a young girl from Hermiston, Oregon, joined her family on a Thanksgiving long-haul trucking run from their home to Bakersfield. Her father, Simon Loza Mejia, drove for Freeway Transport Inc., a Portland-based interstate carrier. On the return leg, the family stopped near Mount Shasta for a break. When Loza Mejia climbed back into the cab and pulled away, his daughter was still outside. The truck's rear wheels rolled over her, peeling skin and muscle from her bones and leaving her severely disfigured.

By the time of trial in early 2010, the girl was 14 years old and had already undergone multiple surgeries. Doctors projected she would need at least 19 additional procedures. Treatment at Shriners Children's Hospital alone had cost $1.6 million.

Robert A. Buccola and Steven M. Campora of Dreyer Babich Buccola Wood Campora tried the case. The central legal question was whether Freeway Transport bore any liability for an injury that occurred during a family break on a company run. Campora studied the federal regulations governing common carriers, and the argument he constructed was straightforward: Freeway Transport insured the load, guaranteed its delivery, and profited from the produce shipment. That economic relationship extended the company's responsibility to injuries that arose during the trip, even during a roadside stop.

Sacramento County Superior Court Judge David W. Abbott agreed that Freeway Transport was liable, and the case proceeded to a 13-day jury trial on damages. The 10-woman, two-man panel returned a verdict of $24,307,273, allocated as follows: $2.2 million for past medical expenses, $2.1 million for future economic losses, $8 million for past pain and mental suffering, and $12 million for future noneconomic losses.

The award was the largest personal-injury verdict in Sacramento County history at the time. Under a High-Low Agreement negotiated during trial, the final amount paid was reduced to $22.5 million. The defense did not appeal.