Family awarded $58.5M in fatal crash

SANTA FE – A Santa Fe jury this week awarded the family of a Carlsbad man $58.5 million – believed to be one of the largest awards in New Mexico history – in a lawsuit against companies that operated the tanker truck involved in a fatal crash three years ago.

Santa Fe attorney Bill Robins, who represented the family and estate of Kevin Udy, said the award sends a “strong message for safety.”

“This was a really clear message to the trucking industry and the oil and gas industry in particular that companies that choose not to follow safety rules will be held responsible,” said Robins.

The suit, heard this week in a trial before District Judge Raymond Ortiz, was brought against a trio of companies involved in the transportation of water that had been separated from oil, Robins said.

According to news stories at the time, the tanker truck made a left turn in front of a pickup truck driven by Udy, which then struck the tanker truck’s trailer.

The companies that were sued, along with the truck driver, were Standard E&S LLC and Bergstein Enterprises Ltd., both of Texas, and Zia Transport Inc. of Hobbs.

The defense attorney in the case, Randal W. Roberts of Albuquerque, declined to comment on the case except to say he didn’t think the Wednesday verdict was “supportable” and that the defense would appeal.

The Carlsbad Current-Argus reported in 2010 that Udy, 46, died following the crash on U.S. 62-180. Udy was driving a pickup on the highway east of Carlsbad when the tanker truck made a left turn into the path of Udy’s pickup.

Udy was married and had five children and a stepson. His obituary states that he got his degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Washington and was working in Carlsbad with Intrepid Potash.

On Thursday, Robins told the Journal that the tanker truck’s driver was finishing up a 13-hour workday and was driving an empty 18-wheel tanker truck owned by Zia (a company owned by Bergstein) and leased to Standard E&S.

The estate’s complaint states that the driver, who was hired by Zia, made a “sudden and unexpected” left turn across Udy’s lane, putting him in the way of Udy’s truck, causing Udy to hit the back of the big rig. Udy died en route to the hospital.

Robins said the award could be the largest ever in New Mexico. A call to the state Administrative Office of the Courts on that issue was not returned.

Robins, in an interview Thursday, maintained that the driver had inadequate training and experience to operate the tanker truck. He said the truck was improperly maintained and had a faulty tire and wasn’t roadworthy.

Robins also said Standard had a policy in which drivers were not paid hourly, but rather paid by the job.

He said drivers were allocated only a certain amount of time to get a job done, meaning in order to meet deadlines, they had to hurry.

He alleged that the company’s drivers had many speeding tickets and said he presented expert testimony to show that the driver was inexperienced and was likely fatigued when the crash occurred.

The verdict in the case was unanimous, according to a partial transcript of Wednesday’s proceedings forwarded by Robins. The court allowed the jury foreman to read a statement regarding the verdict.

“Our hope is that our judgment will clearly communicate that we expect a much higher standard of safety and training in the trucking industry,” the jury statement said.

The jury’s award broke down this way, according to the jury’s verdict form:

♦ $8 million in damages suffered by the trust representing Udy’s widow, Susan Udy, and his children.

♦ $2 million for the emotional distress and loss of companionship suffered by Susan Udy and $500,000 each for three of Udy’s children for the same kind of damages.

♦ The driver, Monte Lyons, was found 1 percent negligent, Bergstein Enterprises was found 70 percent negligent, Standard 20 percent and Zia 9 percent.

♦ Punitive damages of $28 million were found against Standard E&S; $5 million against Zia Transport and $14 million against Bergstein Enterprieses.

The case ended up in Santa Fe because the personal representative for Udy’s estate was Santa Fe Trust Inc., located in Santa Fe, according to the complaint.
— This article appeared on page A1 of the Albuquerque Journal