Miami Jury Returns $31 Million Verdict in ‘Flying Tire’ Death Case

A Miami-Dade County jury has returned a $31 million verdict in favor of Julianna Charles, the surviving fiancée of 25-year-old Josué Calá, who was tragically killed when a tire and wheel assembly detached from a commercial box truck, bounced over the Interstate 95 median and crashed through the windshield of the SUV he was driving.

“This tragedy should raise serious concerns about the lack of proper practices in the trucking industry,” said plaintiffs attorney Wes Ball of Kaster Lynch Farar Ball, who tried the case. “This should be a wakeup call for the transportation companies, insurers and legislators that are colluding to weaken safety and liability standards and endanger every other driver on the road.”

On June 5, 2018, Mr. Calá and Ms. Charles were traveling northbound on I-95 near Fort Lauderdale when a tire and wheel assembly sheared off from a southbound commercial delivery truck, flew over the median and struck their vehicle. Mr. Calá was nearly decapitated and was killed instantly. Ms. Charles, who was seated in the passenger seat, survived but sustained significant injuries and emotional trauma.

Ms. Charles filed her negligence lawsuit against eight corporate and individual defendants, including Marazul Enterprise, XPO Logistics and Lowe’s Home Centers. The complaint alleged negligence in failing to properly inspect, maintain and repair the truck that caused the catastrophic crash.

Jurors deliberated for five hours before returning the verdict following the two-week trial, placing 30% of the blame on truck driver Francisco Romero. The jury split the remaining fault equally between delivery giant XPO Logistics and Marcelo Munoz, owner of Marazul Enterprise. The jury also found that Romero was acting as an agent of XPO, making the company responsible not only for its own direct negligence, but also for Romero’s share of fault.

Mr. Ball, Skip Lynch and Kyle Farrar with Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball tried the case. This is the same legal team that won a landmark defamation case against Alex Jones on behalf of Sandy Hook families and secured a $1 billion jury verdict in a defective seatbelt case against Mitsubishi.

The case is Charles v. Marazul Enterprise Inc., et al., No. 2020-011693-CA-01 in the 11th Judicial Circuit Court in Miami-Dade County, Florida.

The trial lawyers at Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball specialize in cases against global auto and tire manufacturers, focusing on defects such as tire tread separation that cause rollovers at high speeds. The firm has secured major verdicts and settlements against top automakers. Learn more at klfblaw.com.

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