Telfair County Jury Awards Former Coroner $2.84 Million After Tractor-Trailer Crosses Center Line
After trial: The Hortons appealed only the trial court's ruling against their claim for attorney fees under OCGA 13-6-11, and the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed it on November 21, 2013. The damages verdict was not challenged on appeal.
Won by McArthur Law Firm.
On October 27, 2008, a tractor-trailer crossed the center line of Georgia Highway 31 near McRae and hit the pickup of Raford Horton, a 60-year-old former Telfair County coroner. Horton's pelvis, left knee and left hip were badly injured, and he suffered foot drop. The defendants stipulated to fault on the eve of trial in September 2011, and a Telfair County jury awarded the Hortons $2,836,814, including $250,000 to his wife for loss of consortium.
What happened
On October 27, 2008, Raford Horton was driving on Georgia Highway 31 near McRae when a tractor-trailer came across the center line and crashed into his truck. Horton, then 60 and a former Telfair County coroner, was taken to Dodge County Hospital and then transferred to the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon. The driver, Joseph Dennis, worked for Horton Iron Works, LLC and was operating under the interstate motor carrier authority of The Putnam Group, LLC.
The crash crushed Horton's pelvis and injured his left knee and left hip. He was left with foot drop, a condition that weakens the muscles that lift the front of the foot. His treatment included multiple joint replacements, debridements and other surgeries. The Hortons also claimed that he suffered a mild traumatic brain injury affecting his memory and mental function, and a pelvic nerve injury with lasting effects.
Raford and Virginia Horton sued in the Superior Court of Telfair County in June 2009. Mr. Horton sought damages for his injuries and Mrs. Horton for loss of consortium. Katherine McArthur and Caleb Walker of McArthur Law Firm represented them. The defendants were Dennis, Horton Iron Works, The Putnam Group and Horton Iron Works' liability insurer. For more than two years the defendants did not admit fault, and their lawyers questioned both who caused the wreck and how far the claimed injuries went.
Just before trial was set to begin on September 26, 2011, the defendants stipulated that Dennis was at fault and that they were responsible for the accident. They also conceded that the wreck caused the crushed pelvis, the left knee and hip injuries, and the foot drop. They kept contesting the brain injury and nerve damage claims. The trial therefore went forward on damages.
The Telfair County jury awarded $1,252,804 for Mr. Horton's medical bills, $184,010 for past and future lost income, and $1,150,000 for past and future physical and mental pain and suffering. It awarded Mrs. Horton $250,000 for loss of consortium. The components total $2,836,814. A reprint of the Telfair Enterprise's coverage, which rounds the figures slightly differently, reported that the court ordered the defendants to pay the judgment with 6.25 percent interest.
The Hortons had also asked the court for attorney fees under OCGA 13-6-11, arguing the defendants had been stubbornly litigious by denying liability until the eve of trial. The trial court ruled for the defendants on that claim as a matter of law, finding a genuine dispute over the brain injury and nerve damage. The Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed that ruling on November 21, 2013, in a decision by Presiding Judge Ellington. The damages verdict itself was not part of the appeal.
Sources
This account is drawn from contemporaneous public reporting and the court record.
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