Car crashes occur in seconds. Unfortunately, they can take years or even a lifetime to recover from. Recently, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers partner Griffin O’Hanlon won a $2.46 million verdict for a client who suffered horrendous injuries in a Norfolk car crash. It was the second-highest car crash verdict in Virginia in 2022.
Although only a small amount of cases go all the way to a trial, the attorneys at Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers are prepared to fight for as long as it takes to get justice for their badly injured clients.
The victim in the case was a front-seat passenger in a car traveling on Interstate 64 in Norfolk. Another vehicle crossed a grassy center median and hit his car. The passenger was asleep at the time and awoke to feel immense pain in his lower left leg. An ambulance took him from the accident scene to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital where he was diagnosed with a comminuted tibial plafond fracture, left talus fracture, and fibula fracture. This is an extreme injury. Our client’s left ankle shattered from the impact.
Surgeons at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital stabilized the fractures with an external fixator. Unfortunately, it later lost fixation and required a revision operation.
The hospital discharged our client approximately two weeks later. However, he developed osteomyelitis, a bone infection, at the insertion sites of the external fixator screws. He underwent several operative procedures for the placement of antibiotic beads to treat the infection, as well as a month-long admission at a nearby rehabilitation center for treatment of the infection.
Severe injuries such as this often entail complications. Sadly, our client’s left ankle bones healed in such a way as to fuse his ankle joint resulting in a restricted range of motion. The positioning of the autofusion left our client with a foot that was fused at a slightly downward angle causing issues with his walking.
The passenger hired Griff O’Hanlon to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver’s insurance company. We hired medical experts who gave evidence about the severe impairment the injury left to the patient’s left ankle. Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers presented evidence of the high medical bills incurred by our client at the trial.
Medical experts found future operations were unlikely to significantly improve our client’s damaged left ankle because his chronic osteomyelitis makes him a poor candidate for those treatment options. About $415,000 in past medical bills were presented to the trial, along with a contested claim for a future cervical surgery at a cost of approximately $130,000.
The driver who crossed a median and hit our client was intoxicated at the time of the wreck. The evidence was presented to the jury over a single day. The jury awarded just over $2.46 million to our client. The award was the second highest car crash verdict awarded at a trial in Virginia in 2022, according to Virginia Lawyers Weekly.
The verdict is the latest in a long series of multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements secured by the attorneys at Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers. Our past results include $6.5 million for a car crash victim who was left a paraplegic by a crash and $5.8 million for a traumatic brain injury sufferer. Although these results seem like large figures, no amount of money can bring back the quality of life these car crash victims suffered. Sadly, many people who sustain serious injuries face paying millions of dollars in medical fees in the future and some require care for the rest of their lives. If you or a family member sustained an injury because of the fault of another driver, please contact our car accident specialists at 757-333-3333.
