original story by Donald Johnston of the Daily Report
A record $2 million wrongful death verdict reached Friday in Bleckley County Superior Court was “nothing more and nothing less” than a tribute to a 42-year-old schoolteacher killed by a tractor-trailer with malfunctioning brakes, says plaintiff’s attorney W. Carl Reynolds.
Reynolds and his partner, Katherine L. McArthur, of Macon’s Reynolds & McArthur, also say the verdict in favor of the husband of Barbara Mitchell helps to further dispel the myth that plaintiffs can’t get an “adequate” verdict from juries in South Georgia or rural Georgia. Asked if the $2 million verdict will be appealed, defense attorney Hugh B. McNatt of Vidalia responds that he is undecided, adding, “Lord, I ain’t over the shock yet.”
Court Clerk Diane Brown says the highest previous verdict she could recall in Bleckley County was $200,000. That decision, in fact, was reversed. The case was retried and the second judgment was about $60,000. Reynolds says further that the verdict shatters the presumption that a rural jury will not award “just damages” to a black plaintiff in a suit against a white defendant.
The jury was composed of six blacks and six whites, six men and six women. There were four defendants in the case: Glen A. Brown, the truck’s driver; Ferrell Dixon, the truck’s owner; the Bennett Trucking Co., the truck’s operator; and the Canal Insurance Co., its insurer. Roland Mitchell was the plaintiff both individually as Barbara Mitchell’s next of kin and surviving spouse and as administrator of her estate.
The complaint, Case No. 88V-0189, was filed Nov. 16, 1987. The defense was led by Hugh B. McNatt of Vidalia. J. Johnson Hall of Hall & Hall in Hawkinsville also represented the Bennett Trucking Co. Dixon, the truck’s owner, lives in Cochran, in Bleckley County. McNatt says he expects to decide whether the verdict will be appealed in the next week or 10 days.
“Lord, I ain’t over the shock yet,’ he says of the $2,001,021.08 verdict.
The jury deliberated about three hours Thursday and one hour Friday before reaching its decision. Reynolds says the victim in the case, Barbara Mitchell, was “just a great lady who touched so many lives.”
Many of the 20 witnesses he and McArthur called over the course of the three-day trial were some of the people whose lives she had affected.
“As always seems to be the case with a good verdict,” Reynolds says, “your client must be perceived by the jury as a sincere, productive and worthwhile person in addition to proving facts which support the liability in the case.”
Mitchell was a special education teacher in Macon, had a master’s degree from Mercer University, was active in her church, her profession and her community, Reynolds says. She was a wife and mother of three children; two are now in college and the third is in high school.
According to the the plaintiff’s trial brief, Mitchell was driving her car on Joycliff Road in Bibb County the afternoon of July 11, 1986. She saw the 18-wheeler driven by Brown coming down a hill toward her. Brown, unable to stop, pulled into the oncoming lane to avoid cars in front of him, the brief says.
“Upon seeing the truck coming at her lane of cars,” the document continues, “Barbara Mitchell moved her car onto the shoulder of the roadway in order to get out of the way of Glen Brown’s truck. Glen Brown left the roadway with his truck, and collided with Barbara Mitchell’s vehicle smashing her car between his truck and a telephone pole.”
Mitchell suffered massive injuries from the wreck, including a fractured pelvis, separation of the right sacroiliac joint, cuts, bruises and internal injuries. She died after 28 days in the hospital. Her medical bills were $106,369.48. The plaintiff’s lawyers were able to establish that the truck driven by Brown had not been adequately maintained. In fact, Reynolds says, the company’s maintenance record was “so substandard as to be almost a joke.”
“We had hard evidence that those brakes had been out of repair for at least two months and that the driver had complained about them,” he says.
McNatt says he attempted to argue for contributory negligence, comparative negligence and avoidance, but Judge Hugh Lawson would not allow the argument. McNatt says he ended up arguing the case on damages alone. At one point, says Reynolds, the defense offered a $500,000 settlement, later raising it to $600,000.
The family rejected both offers. It was, McNutt admits, “a case that could inflame people’s passions.” He says the plaintiff’s lawyers tried “a damn good case.”
Reynolds returns the compliment, calling McNatt “a tremendous trial attorney. He did a good job with a bad case.”
