Jury Awards $35 Million in Seat Belt Failure

LOS ANGELES —  A jury awarded $35 million Friday to a 31-year-old man who suffered severe brain damage when his seat belt ripped in half during a 1994 accident, causing him to hit the steering wheel of his van.

The judgment found Auranco/Coachman Industries liable for making the defective belt and leaving John Borgia, who was 25 at the time and living in Hollywood, severely brain damaged and a quadriplegic, said Edward Steinbrecher, Borgia’s attorney.

The accident occurred on Oct. 29, 1994, when another vehicle going 35 to 40 mph crossed over the center line on Forest Lawn Drive and struck Borgia’s converted Dodge Caravan head-on.

During the collision, the seat belt’s anchor in the van gave way, “allowing the seat belt to move far forward,” Steinbrecher said. “He was virtually unrestrained.”

Borgia’s sister bought the Dodge Caravan off the showroom floor at a dealership in Miami. It was then converted in Florida by Aero Vans, which installed captain’s chairs mounted on a pedestal made by Auranco, Steinbrecher said. But the pedestal did not secure the seat, which came off its tracks during the impact, he added.

The $35-million award was offset by about $10 million in previous settlements collected from Aero Vans, Chrysler and Jansko Inc., which made the seats in the van.

The money will be used to care for Borgia, who had been in a county nursing home since the accident but recently moved with his family to Erie, Pa., Steinbrecher said.

Auranco’s attorney, Kenneth Katel, couldn’t be reached.