Alabama Civil Trial Reporter

Mobile County 2023

(21) SAVONNYA D. RODRIGUES, Individually and as Mother and Next Friend of L.R. and N.R., Minors and KELLEY MORGAN, as Mother and Next Friend of A.H., a Minor vs. CASSIE MARIE SOWA, STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC., and NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD. (Circuit Court of Mobile County, Alabama)

County/Docket #/Judge: Mobile / 02-CV-2020-901869 / S. Wesley Pipes

Plaintiff(s) Attorney(s): Britt V. Bethea of Greene & Phillips, LLC, Mobile, AL; Evan G. Allen of Beasley, Allen, et al., Montgomery, AL

Defendant(s) Attorney(s): Steven P. Savarese, Jr., and Dennis McKenna of Holtsford Gilliland, et al., Daphne, AL, for State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company; H. Lanier Brown, J. Patrick Strubel, and Anthony R. Anello of Watkins & Eager PLLC, Birmingham, AL, and M. Warren Butler of Starnes Davis, et al., Mobile, AL, for Nissan North America, Inc., and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd

Age/Sex/Occupation Of Plaintiff: L.R.: Minor / F / n/a; N.R.: Minor / F / n/a; A.H.: Minor / F / n/a

Cause Of Injury: Products Liability/Negligence/Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Benefits/Airbag Blinds Minor Passenger After Vehicle Pulls Into Other Vehicle’s Lane of Travel.. On Oct. 2, 2020, plaintiff Savonnya D. Rodrigues, individually and as the mother of minor plaintiffs L.R. and N.R., and plaintiff Kelley Morgan, as the mother of minor A.H., filed an amended complaint against defendants Cassie Marie Sowa, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Nissan North America, Inc., and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Plaintiff alleged that on Oct. 5, 2018, L.R. was driving a 1998 Infiniti QX4 south on McVay Drive in Mobile County, with N.R. and A.H. as passengers. Sowa pulled into plaintiffs’ lane of travel and caused her vehicle to collide with the Infiniti. The passenger-side airbag deployed, striking A.H. in the face and causing her to become blind in her left eye. Plaintiffs brought claims of negligence and/or wantonness against Sowa, a claim for uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits on behalf of L.R. and N.R. against State Farm, a claim under the Alabama Extended Manufacturer’s Liability Doctrine on behalf of A.H. against the Nissan defendants, a claim of crashworthiness on behalf of A.H. against the Nissan defendants, and a claim of negligence/wantonness on behalf of A.H. against the Nissan defendants. The case against Sowa was stayed due to Sowa’s bankruptcy filing. On June 2, 2023, plaintiffs filed a notice indicating that the claims of L.R. and N.R. against State Farm had been settled. A guardian ad litem was appointed for N.R. The Alabama Extended Manufacturer’s Liability Doctrine and negligence claims of A.H. against the Nissan defendants went to trial. The Nissan defendants denied the allegations.

Nature Of Injury: Blindness in left eye and other personal injuries, disfigurement, mental anguish, and pain and suffering (A.H.); personal injuries (L.R. and N.R.).

Expert Witnesses:

Plaintiff's: William G. Broadhead, Automotive Engineering, Santa Barbara, CA

Defendant's: n/a

Settlement: $7,500 on Sept. 8, 2023 ($2,500 – attorney’s fee for N.R. to be paid to Greene and Phillips; $466.02 – expenses for N.R. to be paid to Greene and Phillips; $410.20 – medical expenses for N.R.; $4,123.78 – to be held by clerk of court in interest-bearing, blocked account until N.R. reached her majority).

Verdict: $8,500,000 for Plaintiff on June 14, 2023 . (A.H.’s Alabama Extended Manufacturer’s Liability doctrine claim against Nissan defendants).

Judgment: $8,500,000 for Plaintiff on June 19, 2023 (A.H. against Nissan defendants).

Editor’s Note: The jury did not find for A.H. on her negligence claim. The Nissan defendants filed a motion for judgment as a matter of law, judgment notwithstanding the verdict, for new trial, or for remittitur. According to an article by Warren Kulo, “Mississippi woman who lost eye due to faulty airbag awarded $8.5 million from Nissan,” published on AL.com on June 22, 2023, and updated on June 23, 2023, A.H., a high school freshman at the time, suffered injuries to her right eye as well and had to have both eyes stitched shut for a month. Sowa was estimated to have been traveling 7 mph when she struck the Infiniti, which was estimated to have been traveling at 14 mph. The airbag inflated rapidly after it had already struck A.H. in the face. N.R.’s guardian ad litem, Jennifer Holifield, was awarded a fee of $750.