Testimony concluding in Ford trial
1999 wreck killed one, injured one

Published: Friday, August 4, 2006 - 8:23 am
Last updated: Friday, August 4, 2006 - 11:23 Am

By Julie Howle
STAFF WRITER
jhowle@greenvillenews.com

Defense testimony continued this morning and is expected to end today in the trial for two product liability lawsuits filed against Ford Motor Co. and others over a wreck where a 1995 Explorer rolled over, killing one woman and leaving another a quadriplegic.

The plaintiffs could bring rebuttal testimony, and then closing arguments are expected Saturday in the case against Ford, TRW Vehicle Safety Systems Inc. and D&D Motors Inc.

Plaintiff attorneys have said the occupants in the 1995 Ford Explorer were wearing seatbelts and that two came unlatched after the vehicle accelerated and "took off." But defense attorneys have said those passengers weren't wearing seatbelts during the 1999 wreck.

The lawsuits, filed in state court in Greenville in 2002, question the vehicle's occupant restraint system, electronic cruise control and vehicle body and chassis.
 

Attorneys and court staff are camped out for the third week of trial in the largest courtroom of the Greenville County Courthouse surrounded by boxes stuffed with files and scattered under seats.

Car parts used in demonstrations sit on the edge of the jury box, and there are two large sections of cars complete with driver seats, dashboards, steering wheels, middle consoles and seatbelts. One is sitting in the hall outside the courtroom because it is too large to fit through the door.