Carolina Personal Injury News

South Carolina Court: Ford Can Be Sued For Wrongful Death

Posted on Mar 21, 2011

The South Carolina Supreme Court has decided that Ford can face a wrongful death lawsuit regarding the materials they use in their car and truck windows. This decision comes just days after the same court ruled that another car company, Mazda, could be sued for wrongful death regarding which type of seat belts they install in their vehicles.

The decision comes after a wrongful death lawsuit filed by a South Carolina mother regarding James Lloyd, a teen who died in a Ford Truck accident in 2003.

The accident took place after Lloyd and a friend, Preston Cromer, spent the night drinking at a strip club despite the fact that neither were of legal drinking age. On the drive home, Cromer, the driver, was speeding while Lloyd was in the back of the truck cab. When Cromer lost control of the vehicle, it ran off of the road and rolled over several times, ejecting Lloyd from the vehicle. He was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident and died at the scene of the crash.

Lloyd’s mother, Mary Robyn Priester, took her wrongful death case to court, stating that the strip club should have never served the boys alcohol and that Ford Motor Company should have never used the materials that they did to make windows that shattered so easily and that caused Lloyd’s ejection from the vehicle.

In the past, courts have showed inconsistency in wrongful death cases like these, in which federal safety standards often pre-empt the lawsuits.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a law firm whose attorneys focus on injury and accident law and we have experience handling wrongful death cases. We serve every area of North Carolina, including the Outer Banks, Nags Head and the western mountains, as well as all the cities and counties in between. In South Carolina, we cover the state from Myrtle Beach and Charleston to Orangeburg, Columbia, Florence, Rock Hill, Darlington, Aiken, Anderson, Greenville and Spartanburg.

Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008 and listed in the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009. Our North Carolina injury law firm has also been named one of the Best Injury Law Firms in North Carolina for personal injury plaintiffs since 2010 by U.S. News & World Report. Additionally, our firm has the highest rating of AV from national lawyer ranking organization Martindale-Hubbell. That means we have a reputation for demonstrating preeminent legal skill.

While not every injury case meets our criteria, we offer free initial confidential injury case consultations. So call us toll-free at (800) 752-0042. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, please leave a voicemail so we can return your call promptly.