Yesterday a Salt Lake jury returned a $25,000,000 verdict in the Salt Lake products liability and wrongful death trial of Mahe v. Century Blinds, #180901362, Third District Court for Salt Lake County (Judge James Gardner).
This was a negligence/products liability case involving the tragic strangulation in 2016 of a three-year old girl, Elsie Mahe, on a window blind cord at the family’s home in Provo. The complaint alleged various causes of action under negligence and products liability.
This death was heavily covered in the local and national press, e.g. CNN; Fox; KTLA; Salt Lake Tribune.
After a week-long trial, the jury entered a special verdict accepting every claim for relief– negligence, failure to warn, etc.– asserted by the parents. The jury rejected any comparative fault on the parents’ behalf. Finally, the jury found the conduct of the defendant to warrant an award of punitive damages.
So, in addition to the huge compensatory award, the trial will now proceed to determine the amount of punitive damages. (***UPDATE, 9/22- SETTLEMENT REACHED THIS MORNING BEFORE PUNITIVES EVIDENCE***.)
Plaintiffs’ counsel: Alan Mortensen, Lance L. Milne, Paul J. Simmons and Christopher Cheney of DEWSNUP KING OLSEN WOREL HAVAS MORTENSEN; James T. Corrigan and James O’Leary of O’LEARY, SHELTON, CORRIGAN, PETERSON, DALTON & QUILLIN, St. Louis.
