Crash Sequence Animations Bolstered Damages Claim in Fatal Motorcycle Crash That Ended in $4.9M Settlement, Attorney Says

The estate of a New Jersey man who died when his motorcycle collided with a dump truck has accepted $4.9 million to settle his Atlantic County wrongful-death suit.

Joseph Falcone was riding west on Zion Road in Egg Harbor Township on Aug. 5, 2021, when his motorcycle collided with an eastbound dump truck that was making a left turn, according to the complaint. The truck belonged to Egg Harbor and was operated by one of its employees, William Wellington, the suit said. Falcone, 54, was pronounced dead at the scene, said the estate’s attorney, Michael Mackler of Goldenberg, Mackler, Sayegh, Mintz, Pfeffer, Bonchi & Gill in Northfield.

Michael Mackler of Goldenberg, Mackler, Sayegh, Mintz, Pfeffer, Bonchi & Gill in Northfield, New Jersey. Courtesy photo

The headlight on Falcone’s motorcycle was on at the time of the accident, although the crash took place in daytime hours, Mackler said. Wellington, the truck driver, said he did not see the motorcycle approaching, and was not issued any summonses, according to Mackler.

Mackler said he enhanced the damages for survivor claims by using crash sequence animations that would have given a jury the operator’s point of view that both motorists would have had leading up to the crash.

Falcone was a retired Atlantic City police officer with 25 years of service, attaining the rank of sergeant and commander of the bomb squad, Mackler said.

The settlement was reached April 12, after mediation with Eugene J. McCaffrey Jr., a former presiding civil judge in Gloucester, Salem and Cumberland counties who is now with McCaffrey ADR. Superior Court Judge Michael Blee also appointed McCaffrey to apportion the estate among Falcone’s widow and three minor children.

The case was dismissed July 19, after Blee approved orders calling for payment of $500,000 to the estate and the placement of $3.2 million in structured settlements benefiting Falcone’s wife and children, as well as a fee request of $1,182,447 and costs of $50,261.

According to Mackler, the mediation was held before an answer was filed, and the defendant couldn’t dispute liability given the circumstances of the crash.

The lawyer for Egg Harbor and Wellington was James R. Birchmier of Madden & Madden in Tuckahoe. He did not respond to a call about the settlement.