Jury Returns $220 Million Verdict Against Michelin in Deadly Crash

Faulty tire design, manufacturing led to death of three generations of New Mexico family

LAS VEGAS, N.M--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A New Mexico jury has returned a $220 million verdict, finding that the Michelin North America tire company was liable for a deadly crash that killed three members of a Texas family in the summer of 2021.

Laura Zamarippa, Rosalva Marin and 14-year-old Alexis Zamarippa died when a Michelin-produced LTX M tire installed on the front driver’s side violently separated while the three family members were driving on a rural highway in Gaines County, Texas.

The failure caused the car being driven by Laura Zamarippa to veer into oncoming traffic, causing a head-on collision with another vehicle. As a result of the crash, Ms. Zamarippa and Ms. Marin were pronounced dead at the scene, while Alexis died shortly after being transported to a medical facility by air ambulance.

The faulty tire was purchased at a store operated by Discount Tire Company of New Mexico, also a defendant in the case. The jury placed 100% of the liability for the tire failure on Michelin.

“Michelin fought hard — all the way to the New Mexico Supreme Court — in an effort to not produce certain emails and documents that had not been produced before,” said attorney Wes Ball of Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball in Houston. “The court denied that request, and we believe those materials introduced at trial were key in showing Michelin’s decision to gamble with people’s lives.”

The case is Grano et al. v. Michelin North America, Inc. et al., No. D-412-CV-2021-00197 in the Fourth Judicial District Court for San Miguel County, New Mexico.

About Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball

The trial lawyers at Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball have hard-earned expertise in cases against global auto and tire manufacturers over various automotive defects, as well as tire-tread separation defects that can cause vehicles to lose control and roll over, often at highway speeds and without warning. The firm has secured verdicts and settlements against some of the largest automakers in the world in cases involving auto defects. For more information, visit klfblaw.com.