First Firestone Tire Trial Begins
August 13, 2001
As its parent company Bridgestone recorded a $250 million loss for the first half of 2001, Firestone is preparing to defend itself against claims that its tires were responsible for an accident that left a Texas woman with severe brain damage. This is the first case to go to trial, as previous Firestone-Ford Explorer rollover accidents have settled out of court. Experts expect Firestone to defend itself by shifting blame to the Ford Explorer's alleged design defects.
Marisa Rodriguez, a 40-year-old mother of two, has been hospitalized since the accident in March 2000. She was a passenger in the rear seat of an Explorer when it rolled in Reynosa, Mexico following a tread separation of the right rear Wilderness AT tire. Rodriguez and her family were on their way home to Texas.
Firestone recalled the tires on Rodriguez's Explorer six months after the accident. Her attorneys filed suit against both Ford and Firestone. Ford settled its share of the suit for an undisclosed sum.
This trial will be the first in which Firestone asserts its defense that the Explorer's design was responsible for the rollover. The two companies parted ways following the recent publicity surrounding the more than 200 deaths attributed to Firestone-Ford Explorer accidents.
Firestone officials maintain that a blowout or tread separation should not lead to rollover. According to Firestone, a driver should be able to pull over to the side of the road, change the tire and move on, not face death or permanent disability when a tire fails.
-- Article Courtesy of InjuryBoard.com
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