Lynn v. Dean

Defense Verdict

Date of Verdict: July 8.

Court and Case No.: C.P. Westmoreland No. 3270 of 2017.

Judge: Harry F. Smail Jr.

Type of Action: Motor vehicle.

Injuries: Back, neck, knee and hip injuries.

Plaintiffs Counsel: Timothy J. Scelsi, Reeves & Ross, Latrobe.

Defense Counsel: Garth Gartin, Robb Leonard Mulvihill, Pittsburgh.

Comment:

On Nov. 2, 2016, plaintiff Florence Lynn, 80, was driving on Route 51, in Roastraver. She was involved in a sideswipe collision with a vehicle that was being driven by Alex Dean, who was traveling on the same side of Route 51. Lynn claimed that she suffered injuries of her back, a hip, a knee and her neck.

Lynn sued Dean. Lynn alleged that Dean was negligent in the operation of his vehicle. Lynn noted that the collision occurred moments after she had executed a left turn into the left lane of Route 51, from a gasoline station. She claimed that Dean, driving in the right lane, entered her lane and struck her car.

The defense maintained that, while Dean was driving in the left lane of Route 51, Lynn exited the parking lot when it was not safe to do so and sideswiped the left side of Dean's truck.

Following the accident, Lynn drove to an emergency room with complaints of pain in her neck, back, left hip and left knee. She was diagnosed with whiplash and strains and sprains of her cervical and lumbar regions, her left hip and her left knee.

For the next month, Lynn consulted her primary care physician and convalesced at her house by remaining non-weight-bearing. Lynn received no pain medication or physical therapy, and no further treatment was administered.

Lynn's counsel cited her medical records to causally relate her injuries and treatment to the accident, and he argued that Lynn suffered serious impairment of a bodily function.

Lynn testified that, in the weeks post-accident, she was in severe pain and was limited in her activities of daily living. She claimed that she relied on the use of a walker. According to Lynn, she eventually made a good recovery and returned to her baseline condition. She sought damages for past and future pain and suffering.

The defense maintained that Lynn suffered mere soft-tissue injuries from which she admittedly made a full recovery, and that she did not suffer serious impairment of a bodily function.

The jury rendered a defense verdict. It found that Dean was not liable for the accident.

This report is based on information that was provided by plaintiffs and defense counsel.

—This report first appeared in VerdictSearch, an ALM publication