A Monroe County jury has awarded Ashley Rierson $12,022,950 for serious injuries sustained after being struck as a pedestrian in Islamorada.
On Feb. 11, 2011, a driver heading southbound on U.S. 1 near Mile Marker 82 struck Rierson while she was attempting to cross U.S. 1 at 8 p.m. Rierson was struck by a southbound vehicle and then propelled into the northbound lanes of U.S. 1 and struck by another vehicle traveling northbound.
Rierson sustained significant orthopedic and internal injuries and was airflighted to Ryder Trauma Center in Miami. Her injuries resulted in dozens of surgeries and countless hours of physical and mental rehabilitation.
During the three-week trial, the attorneys for the defendant drivers put up a vigorous defense claiming that they were not responsible for the crash since it was nighttime and Rierson was not visible to them.
Board certified civil trial attorney Michael Cecere, of Cecere Santana, PA and Henry Seiden of The Seiden Law Firm, represented Rierson and argued that she was visible to the motorists and that the cause of the crash was excessive speed on the northbound vehicle and an improper lane change by the southbound vehicle. Cecere successfully argued in his closing statement that the southbound driver’s impatience led to the improper lane change and initial crash with Rierson.
“Ashley Rierson, who was 19 years old at the time of the crash, made a remarkable recovery from her injuries and received a fair verdict that holds the defendants accountable and provides for much needed future medical care and assistance,” Cecere said.
