Keep it simple.

That was the strategy plaintiffs attorney Ramiro Alcazar used when he saw defense counsel attempting to show a Meriden Superior Court jury that plaintiff Ricardo Silva's injuries weren't due to a 2012 car accident, but rather resulted from two other car accidents and two workers' compensation-related claims.

The plaintiff's side hired a chiropractor, who testified at trial that Silva's back injuries were from the 2012 car crash at the center of the suit, and not subsequent incidents. And Alcazar claims his team kept things simple, while defense counsel, Hartford solo practitioner William Melley III, tried to overwhelm the jury.

"Mr. Melley questioned whether future treatment was related to this accident. He questioned the chiropractor. He questioned the MRI, and he questioned the herniated disc," Alcazar said Wednesday. "All I did was make it simple: I told them that I'm a lawyer and not a doctor. I played the lawyer and opposing counsel played the doctor. I think that and the comparison between the plaintiff and the defendant sold the jury.

"I told the jury that there was a 47-year age gap between my client, who was 32, and the defendant, Harry Vega," said Alcazar, a Meriden solo practitioner. "My client, though, looked older. I told the jury to look at both of these individuals and I told them to imagine how my client, who was walking with a cane and was in pain, would look at Mr. Vega's age. I think the jury liked that."

Alcazar continued: "I kept it simple and focused for the jury. I've seen too many lawyers make it all confusing for a jury by throwing everything at them at once."

After deliberating for four hours, the jury rendered a verdict for the plaintiff for $121,769 on March 11. Melley did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday. It's not clear if he will raise a challenge  before the Connecticut Appellate Court.

According to Alcazar and the complaint, which was filed in January 2013 in Meriden Superior Court, Vega's pickup truck ran a stop sign on Center Street in Meriden and struck Silva's 2007 Chevrolet. Vega, a retired Meriden police officer, was issued a police infraction for failure to yield the right of way.

Alcazar said his client, who suffered severe back pain and a herniated disc, told the jury that the car accident "ruined my life."

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