MARSHALL - A Tyler resident has filed a product liability lawsuit against Chrysler after he was injured in a wreck in his Dodge truck.
Kenneth Alan Young and his wife, Deborah, filed suit against Chrysler Group on Sept. 23 in the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division.
The accident occurred on July 31, 2011 as Young was driving in a 2007 Dodge Ram 1500 eastbound on Interstate 20, when he lost control of the vehicle. Ultimately, the vehicle rolled over.
According to the lawsuit, Young claims he was properly wearing his three-point seat belt but sustained serious injuries when the truck failed to protect him.
Young alleges that the vehicle was unreasonably dangerous due to a weak roof structure, which was inadequate and structurally unsound and failed to maintain adequate survival space for the occupant. According to the suit, the roof violated the principles of crashworthiness by destroying the occupant compartment zone and by rendering the other safety systems ineffective.
The lawsuit also states that there were alternative designs available that would prevent roof crush, test analysis were available that would evaluate the integrity of the roof structure that were not conducted and engineering analysis techniques were available such as DFMA, FMEA, fault tree analysis, root cause analysis or risk hazard analysis that were not conducted.
Young is seeking damages for pain and suffering, emotional distress, mental anguish, impairment, disfigurement, loss of consortium, interference with daily activities, reduced capacity to enjoy life, medical expenses, lost wages, interest and court costs.
The plaintiffs are represented by E. Todd Tracy and I. Scott Lidji of The Tracy Firm in Dallas.
U.S. District Judge T. John Ward is assigned to the case.
Case No. 2:11-cv-00431