Ostroff Godshall Injury and Accident Lawyers successfully represented 23 victims from eight different countries against Greyhound Lines, Inc., one of the largest motor coach operators in the United States. The firm’s recoveries total $21.3 million in verdicts and settlements (including delay damages and post-verdict interest) for its injured clients and for the estate of a woman who died in the crash.
“We have been fighting Greyhound for years over this crash, from the date the first victim retained us to the final settlement,” said Ostroff Godshall Injury and Accident Lawyers partner Jon Ostroff. “After six years, more than 75 depositions, and seven weeks of trial, I am proud beyond words of our firm’s success for each of our clients.”
The litigation arose after a Greyhound bus carrying more than 40 passengers collided with a tractor trailer on Interstate 80 in Pennsylvania on October 9, 2013. The bus was traveling from New York, NY to Cleveland, OH when its driver, Sabrina Anderson, fell asleep at the wheel. The bus then left its lane of travel at approximately 67 miles per hour and slammed into the back of the truck, driven by Akos Gubica. Anderson testified that prior to blacking out, her right leg went numb and would not move off the accelerator.
Ostroff Godshall Injury and Accident Lawyers asserted that Greyhound was vicariously liable for Anderson’s conduct and independently liable for the collision due to its inadequate procedures to prevent driver fatigue. The Greyhound defendants disputed the claims about its safety procedures, arguing that the crash occurred because Gubica was driving the tractor trailer at a speed of only 16 miles per hour and had failed to activate his flashing hazard lights.
The Result
The jury found Greyhound Lines, Inc. and Anderson to be 100 percent at fault for the collision, despite the fact that the investigating state trooper had testified and blamed this crash on Gubica. On July 22, 2016, after a seven-week trial, a Philadelphia jury awarded a total of $5.05 million in separate verdicts to each of the four plaintiffs in Hoang v. Greyhound. The award includes $3.05 million in total compensatory damages and $2 million in total punitive damages.
Greyhound appealed twice unsuccessfully; one of which was an interlocutory appeal prior to trial. Greyhound then appealed the trial court’s judgements but was rejected by a Pennsylvania Superior Court Panel that upheld the rulings. The defendants also filed an extraordinary 144 motions in limine since the beginning of the litigation in an attempt to keep evidence out of trial. Despite these actions, Ostroff Godshall Injury and Accident Lawyers prevailed for each of the 23 victims.
The conclusion of Brown v. Greyhound Lines in August 2019 marked the final case stemming from the 2013 crash. Bus passenger Keith Pressman suffered from post-concussive syndrome and a right hip labral tear for which he underwent arthroscopic surgery.
“These cases are a modern story of David and Goliath,” Ostroff added. “Our outstanding team of attorneys, paralegals, and support staff successfully stood up to one of the largest transportation companies in our country, putting in countless hours for the people whose lives were forever changed by this crash.”
