At approximately 5:00 a.m. on the morning of October 23, 2021, the Plaintiff, 46, walked into the rear loading dock bay of a Target Superstore in which a loading truck was parked and had fallen asleep on the ground between the loading dock wall and the truck.
Prior to the Plaintiffs arrival at the loading dock, the loading truck had backed into the loading dock and the driver left the parked truck.
A short time later, the driver of the truck returned to the truck and drove off and in the process ran over the legs of the Plaintiff causing fracture of both legs.
The Defendant loading truck insurer initially refused to accept any liability claiming that the Plaintiff was intoxicated and fell asleep under the parked truck. The case was further complicated as subsequent to the accident the Plaintiff was incarcerated for unrelated matters.
Attorney Brian Cunha investigated the accident and cited the rules to the insurer under The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration §392.7, that explicitly requires a pre-trip walk around inspection of the vehicle prior to operation. Brian Cunha convinced the insurer that had the driver performed a walk-around, he would have observed the Plaintiff laying on the ground and not run him over with his vehicle causing the injuries to the Plaintiff.
The Plaintiff was transported by ambulance to Boston Medical Center for evaluation and treatment of his injuries and was found to be suffering from bilateral femur fractures. He was admitted for orthopedic consultation and surgical intervention
for his injuries.
The case was settled after a full day mediation with the mediator, Suzanne Del Vecchio at Commonwealth Mediations.