In August 2007, Griselda Bernardino and several other people were injured in an SUV rollover crash in San Bernardino County, California. According to the plaintiffs' San Bernardino County, California auto products liability complaint, the catastrophic motor vehicle crash happened because the tread separated from the SUV's left rear tire. As a result of the tire defect, Bernardino lost control of the Ford Expedition and the SUV rolled over.
Bernardino sustained permanent spinal cord injuries and crushing head injuries. Also injured in the San Bernardino County SUV accident were Alonso Martinez, Ayari Martinez, Melani Elizardi, Diana Orozco, and Bianca Orozco. They were all ejected from the vehicle and sustained serious injuries. The latter three are minors. The five of them are also plaintiffs in this California personal injury case. There were other passengers in the SUV who were partially ejected and also were hurt.
The defendants in the San Bernardino motor vehicle crash case are Ford Motor Corporation, TRW Vehicle Safety Systems, Continental Tire Corporation, Beceril Tire Shop, and Chino Hills Ford. The plaintiffs claim that the SUV, made by Ford and purchased at Chino Hills Ford, did not properly protect them during the California rollover accident.
The SUV did not have Electronic Stability Control, which was already available when the auto accident happened. The plaintiffs say that ESC could have allowed Bernardino to stay in control of the vehicle. They also allege that the safety restraint system in the vehicle was defective and dangerous (alleged defects included inertial unlatching, retractor failure, false latching, inadvertent unlatching, and lack of pretensioners) and that the plaintiffs knew that these systems and parts could fail.
Other defects in the SUV noted by the plaintiffs include the lack of side curtain air bags, the windows' defective tempered glass, the driver's side door latch, and the SUV's seat backs and seats. They also say that the SUV's pillars, roof rails, and windshield headers were not built to withstand the weight of the Ford Expedition when it rolled over and the roof crushed inward.
The decision to use Continental ContiTrac SUV tires on the Expedition, say the plaintiffs, was a dangerous choice for a vehicle that nonprofessional motorists would drive.
Some Catastrophic Injuries that Can Arise During SUV Accidents:
• Spinal cord injuries
• Crushed bones
• Burn injuries
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Broken bones
• Internal injuries
• Death
Frontline Rollover, PBS
Related Web Resources:
NHTSA
