Santa Fe, NM jury awards FedEx truck and pickup truck deadly crash victims record $165M
January 24, 2015
SANTA FE (KRQE) – It was a horrific crash. A FedEx truck obliterated a pickup back in June 2011 killing a mother and her 4-year-old daughter. Her 19-month-old son survived.
On Friday, a Santa Fe jury decided FedEx should bear most of the blame for that crash and awarded the family $165 million, a record wrongful death judgement in New Mexico, according to the family’s attorneys.
It was 1:30 in the morning on June 22, 2011 when the FedEx big rig slammed into the back of the pickup truck driven by 22-year-old Mariali Venegas on I-10 outside Las Cruces. The El Paso woman was heading to Deming with her 4-year-old daughter and 19-month-old son at the time. The boy was the only survivor.
FedEx driver Elizabeth Quintana was also killed.
Venegas had reportedly pulled over with her hazard lights on. Quintana crashed into her at 65 miles an hour, and the FedEx truck showed no signs of braking, according to attorneys for the family.
“They need to be responsible for their actions,” said Jim Scherr, one of the attorneys representing the family in the case, said Friday night. “The entire time, from the very beginning, they have denied responsibility and tried to pass responsibility off on someone else.”
Scherr said the jury wanted to send a strong message to FedEx to improve driver training, specifically for fatigue and “danger zone driving”–driving between the hours of midnight and 6 a.m.
According to FedEx, the case may not be over.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to those affected by this tragic accident,” said FedEx spokesperson Jack Pfeiffer. “We respectfully disagree with the jury’s verdict and are exploring our options, including appeal.”
KRQE News 13 also spoke to Joseph Cervantes, another attorney for the family, Friday night.
Cervantes said if FedEx appeals, the corporate giant is only postponing the inevitable.