$165,229 Judgment for Passenger With Spinal Compression Fractures After Idaho Rollover Crash

In February 1986, Rena Braley was riding as a passenger in a car in Idaho when the driver, Daniel Pangburn, took it off the road at high speed. The car rolled over two or three times. Braley was taken to Magic Valley Regional Medical Center, where X-rays and tomograms showed rib fractures on her left side and compression fractures in her thoracic spine.

The trial court's findings put the more serious injuries at five broken ribs, some with displacement, and compression fractures at five levels of the thoracic spine. Her treating physicians also documented a collapsed lung and blood in the chest cavity, and a laceration to the left forearm that left her with some loss of sensation. She spent seven days in the hospital and was then largely bedridden at home for a month. She wore a Jewett brace for three months and could not go back to work or keep up her housework until seven months after the crash.

Pangburn first denied responsibility. The case was set for a jury trial that Braley had demanded, but after discovery and discussions between counsel, he stipulated on the day of trial that he was solely responsible for her injuries. The parties also agreed to waive the jury, so the only question left was damages, and the district court heard it alone. Braley was represented by Hepworth, Nungester & Lezamiz of Twin Falls, with John Hepworth and his son J. Charles Hepworth arguing the appeal; John Lezamiz also appeared for her in the trial court.

Much of the medical proof came by deposition. Two physicians who had treated Braley re-examined her days before their depositions, one of them taking new X-rays, and they described disc space narrowing and bone spurs at the levels of the compressed vertebrae. The court found, in its written decision, that the spinal injuries were permanent and could stay the same or worsen as she aged. It itemized damages for past and future medical expenses, lost income, lost household services, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life, and entered judgment for $165,228.84.

Pangburn moved for a new trial, arguing he had been surprised by the late medical findings. He did not challenge the amount of the award or the sufficiency of the evidence behind it. The district court, which had already refused a continuance on the ground that discovery done after the cutoff date was at the parties' own risk, denied the motion. On appeal, the Supreme Court noted that it was defense counsel's own questions that brought the new X-ray findings out at the deposition. Braley, for her part, cross-appealed the refusal to award her attorney fees.

The Idaho Supreme Court decided both appeals on September 6, 1990. It held that the trial court had acted within its discretion in denying a continuance and a new trial, and that attorney fees could not be assessed on the theory of bad faith in settlement talks, particularly against a defendant who had conceded liability. The court affirmed in all respects.