Our client was driving with their child in a vehicle westbound in #3 of 4 lanes on the 60 Freeway in California. At that time, the defendant was driving a red Sterling 18-wheeler directly behind the plaintiff’s vehicle. The traffic was quite heavy, stop and go. During one of these stops, the plaintiff failed to apply their brakes as our defendant came to a complete stop. This resulted in a rear-end car accident with our client’s car on a Whittier road.
Both at the scene of the collision and later during the deposition, the defendant admitted fault. They stated that they made the mistake of being inattentive and did not have enough time to stop. According to the defendant’s testimony, they braked hard at the time of the collision, and yet the truck slid “maybe one meter” after they tried to brake.
On the day of the Whittier car accident, the victim went to the emergency room at Riverside Community Hospital. There they complained of headaches and neck and lower back discomfort. Physical examination revealed midline tenderness in the cervical and lumbar spine. While in the hospital, they received Ibuprofen. Lastly, the diagnosis included cervical and lumbar sprain secondary to a motor vehicle accident.
