Fatal Car Crash Suit Settled

Toyota Settles with family killed in car crash.

All of us have seen the news about the problems Toyota was having with their cars last year. According to reports, acceleration would start and the consumer would not be able to stop the car. This led to massive recalls and many lawsuits against Toyota. In particular, many brought product liability cases against Toyota claiming that they made faulty products that caused injury or death.

One of these cases has finally come to a close. According to newspaper reports, Mark Saylor, a California Highway Patrol Officer’s 2009 Lexus ES350 accelerated out of control reaching speeds of 120 mph, when it crashed and crashed into a riverbed. Killed in the accident were Saylor; his wife, Cleofe; their 13-year-old daughter, Mahala; and Saylor’s brother-in-law, Christopher Lastrella. All of them lived together in Chula Vista. Saylor was a seasoned officer with years of experience patrolling from behind a wheel.

On Friday, September 17th, Toyota Motor Corp. settled with the family of Mark Saylor, a California Highway Patrol Officer who was killed in an accident that involved unintended acceleration. Mark Saylor’s wife, 13-year-old daughter and his brother-in-law were also killed in the accident. It was this car accident that put the Toyota recalls into the public sphere. The family and Toyota Motor Corp. have not disclosed how much the settlement amount was for.

Settling this case allows Toyota to avoid speaking or admitting to any defects in its cars. Although this is by no means telling, this is just the beginning of many product liability suits against Toyota relating to unintended acceleration problems with their vehicles. The family of the victims has also brought a negligence claim against the dealership. This lawsuit is still pending.

If this crash had happened in Michigan, the value of the family’s claims would have been reduced by the product liability caps put in place by the Michigan Legislature.