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Re: California court upholds $15.4 mln verdict vs. GM Posted by Justin VanAbrahams [Email]  (#32) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Justin VanAbrahams) on Wed, 15 Jan 2003 18:53:22
In Reply to: California court upholds $15.4 mln verdict vs. GM, Eli5, Wed, 15 Jan 2003 17:23:05 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
That is simply wrong. Not only is a company being held liable for utter misuse of their product, but we also put faith in twelve random people to perform some on-the-fly automotive engineering? Give me a break. I don't care who these people were, there is no way they could reasonably assess a vehicle's structure over the course of a trial. That sort of work requires computers and math and things like that, not an assertion that "they could have made the roof rails stronger."
The government establishes minimum safety requirements for all vehicles. I'm sure the Blazer meets those requirements. If not, then there is a case. But assuming it does, it's unreasonable to hold GM liable for not exceeding them - if the government believed rooftop racing was a valid application of a motor vehicle, then they should have incorporated these tests in the certification process.
What if Mr. Lambert had driven his car off a cliff or into a lake? Would GM be held liable for not making their car airworthy or watertight? I doubt it. This is just an example of a sympathetic jury taking liberties with their authority and, quite frankly, I find it a bunch of crap. Unless the court established that every other vehicle on the road would have faired better in identical circumstances and that the Blazer is somehow substandard I'll consider this another example of arbitrary justice.
I think tonight I am going to fall asleep using my table saw. I really don't need $15m, so maybe I'll just lop off a hand or something and angle for a couple million.* That sounds reasonable, don't you think?
-Justin
* And of course, with a couple million bucks and a missing hand, I'll be the second American to have a prosthetic chainsaw. Long live Ash!
posted by 207.215.77...
, Thu, 16 Jan 2003 11:06:55, Thu, 16 Jan 2003 07:37:06, Wed, 15 Jan 2003 18:53:22 <-- Viewing This Message
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