Jury awards small amount for woman’s whiplash

A woman injured in a rear-end traffic accident will take home an award of just $7,000.

Sonja Callaway was a passenger in a stopped vehicle that was struck by a southbound 2008 Acura on Missouri Route 13 in Higginsville.

Callaway alleged that she suffered whiplash in the January 2019 crash and sustained injuries to the head, neck, shoulders and back. The case went to trial against defendant motorist Fredy Omar Bermudez. A company for whom Bermudez allegedly acted as an agent was initially named in the suit but was ultimately dismissed.

According to a description provided by defense attorneys David Buchanan and Taylor Connolly of Brown & James, the 28-year-old plaintiff presented evidence of nearly $63,000 in past medical treatment and cited a future life care plan detailing more than $1.1 million necessary for future care.

However, the attorneys said, jurors took just 90 minutes to return their verdict. The award was increased after trial to $9,802.78 to reflect the plaintiff’s taxable costs.

Eryn Peddicord and Ari Rodopoulos of Peddicord Law, who represented Callaway, did not return a request for comment.

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$9,802 verdict

Motor vehicle collision

Breakdown: $7000 verdict, $2,802.78 in costs

Venue: Lafayette County Circuit Court

Case Number/Date: 20LF-CV00154/Nov. 10, 2022

Judge: Dennis Rolf

Special Damages: $62,904.10 incurred in past medical treatment, $1,108,339.00 life care plan

Last Pretrial Demand: $390,000

Last Pretrial Offer: $225,000

Plaintiff’s Experts: Howard Aks, Kansas City (medical); Cori Ingram, Basehor, Kansas (life care planning); William Schnick (biomechanical)