Automotive Accident Victim Awarded Verdict Of $733,153.16

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

July 1, 2003

Goshen, New York – At the conclusion of a twelve day trial in which evidence was presented by all parties, the jury announced a damages verdict in favor of the plaintiff, LORI TORCHIO, a 40 year old Pine Bush resident totaling $733,153.16.

The case arose out of a head-on collision on January 14, 2000, between TORCHIO’s automobile and a pick-up truck driven by the defendant, WILLIAM J. JAYCOX, a cable installer in the course of his employment with EDMUNDS CABLE SERVICES, INC.

TORCHIO claimed and proved a multitude of injuries including cervical spine herniations, lumbar spine disc bulges, and temporomandibular joint dysfunction (a jaw injury commonly know as TMJ). TORCHIO was rendered totally disabled from this accident and proved that she had been unable to work as a U.S. Letter Carrier since the date of the accident. The defendants disputed that TORCHIO’s injuries stemmed from the accident and further contested whether they were serious enough to prevent her from working.

TORCHIO’s attorney, GUS P. FOTOPOULOS, of the law firm Larkin Ingrassia, PLLC, said that he believed that his Client had serious, painful and disabling injuries. He also stated that these types of injuries (often labeled as “soft tissue injuries”) are viewed by some as not serious since they involve subjective components in their evaluation and diagnosis. Mr. Fotopoulos was quoted as saying “…you cannot plainly see pain, only the effect that the pain has on the person who experiences it. Just because you can’t see the pain it does not mean that it’s not there.”