Press Release - Seward v. State of Washington

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***Immediate Press Release *** From: Stritmatter Kessler Koehler Moore Law Firm Re: Skylar Seward v. State of Washington Date: October 15, 2018

State admits fault for dangerous road and pays $28 Million personal injury settlement Rarely, if ever, does the State admit that it was negligent in a dangerous highway design lawsuit. But in the case of then 15-year-old Skylar Seward who now suffers from quadriplegia, the State has done exactly that. The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is required to keep state roadways reasonably safe for ordinary travel. But in this case, WSDOT has admitted that it failed in its duty. On October 12, 2013, Ms. Seward was a passenger in a vehicle that over corrected and struck an overpass pillar. She played no role in causing the incident. The vehicle should have encountered a barrier that would have redirected it. Instead, it hit a mound of dirt, called an earth berm, that WSDOT installed years before. Concrete Jersey barriers were developed in the 1950s to protect cars from colliding with hazardous structures, including overpass support pillars. This barrier protection has long been installed across Washington state highways, and is a standard, well-functioning re-directional appliance (as is the Wbeam steel guardrail). In 1973, without having conducted proper research, a WSDOT official ordered his staff to use earth berms on state highways because they are aesthetically pleasing and will “gracefully divert an errant auto�. Unfortunately, earth berms were later proven to be ineffective, and several incidents


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