On July 10th, 2018, Trial Attorney, Ricardo J. Martinez, obtained a $287,000 verdict on behalf of one of our clients who sustained minor injuries to his lower back as a result of an arrest gone wrong. On June 25th, 2014, one of our clients was arrested for jumping a subway turnstile in Manhattan. Undercover NYPD officers witnessed the infraction and arrested our client. They placed him in the back of a police van and violated a very basic safety rule, they failed to place a seat belt on our client. During transport, the van come to a sudden stop causing our client to be thrown into a metal partition. He was taking to a hospital where he complained of shoulder pain. Several weeks later, his back started to hurt and he sought medical treatment. He was diagnosed with a lower back disc bulge. He had minimal treatment before discontinuing physical therapy because he had to go back to work. Several years later, he had 2 epidural injections in his lower back.
Prior to trial, the defendants, The City of New York, offered $35,000 to settle the case. We advised our client to reject the offer, which he did. During trial, the defendants’ attorneys argued that our client was in fact seat belted and that even if he wasn’t, his injuries were minor and had resolved by the time the trial was held. Mr. Martinez successfully convinced the jury that our client was not seat belted and that his injuries were indeed significant and he would live with them the rest of his life. The jury compensated our client $287,000 for his pain and suffering, which was a direct result of the defendants’ negligence.
This case highlights the importance of hiring the right attorneys that aren’t scared to go to trial if the defendants’ are not willing to make a fair offer.
