A Dallas County jury this week awarded $37.5 million to the family of a trucker who was killed in 2021 by an Oncor Electric Delivery Co. driver.
Shamsher Singh was inspecting his 18-wheeler on the passenger side, between the truck and the retaining wall, along Interstate 635 West in Dallas on Aug. 7, 2021, when Oncor driver Joseph Pederson, driving a Ford F-150 service vehicle, struck Singh’s truck, pinning him against the wall.
Traffic video footage introduced to jurors showed Pederson did not slow down, change lanes or swerve to avoid the collision, Zehl & Associates lawyer Matt Greenberg, who represented Singh’s widow and three children, told The Texas Lawbook in an interview after the verdict. Data obtained from Pederson’s vehicle showed he did not step on his breaks or turn on his blinker to signify he was trying to get into another lane just before the crash, Greenberg added.
Lawyers for Oncor did not respond to messages requesting comment. Oncor issued a statement to The Lawbook.
“This was a tragic and heartbreaking accident,” the statement reads. “Our sympathies remain with Mr. Singh’s family and their loved ones. We appreciate the jury’s time and consideration and have no further comment at this time.”
“There was only one real piece of evidence that the jury needed in this case, and that was a video of the crash,” Greenberg said.
Jurors who spoke to the lawyers following the verdict said the video affirmed the plaintiff’s assertion Pederson was not paying attention to the road ahead. Jurors also expressed they were upset Oncor didn’t take full responsibility for the crash, Greenberg said.
Pederson testified he looked in his mirrors for a chance to change lanes but that another vehicle was nearing too quickly and he couldn’t get over.
“The evidence clearly contradicts that,” Greenberg said. “It was a race to credibility, and the defendants never got out of the gate.”
Oncor’s lawyers pointed to Singh’s failure to put safety triangles on the road to alert oncoming traffic. Greenberg said his team’s biggest challenge was persuading the jury this argument “didn’t matter.” Singh turned on his hazard lights, and “did the best he could” during the 48 seconds he was outside his vehicle, Greenberg said.
Testimony in the trial began April 2 and the jury deliberated for about eight hours over two days. The jury decided Pederson was negligent but did not reach a decision about whether or not Oncor was grossly negligent. The jury verdict form shows they found Singh’s responsibility for the crash was 16 percent to Pederson’s 84 percent.
Singh’s two daughters were ages 19 and 16 when he died and his son was 10, Greenberg said. His widow and daughters testified during the trial.
“I think the jury really felt for the family and really appreciated the significance of the loss,” Greenberg said.
Jurors also heard from a Good Samaritan, a volunteer firefighter, who stopped and tried to aid Singh. The witness, who Greenberg declined to name, testified he held Singh and tried to comfort him as he died.
Jurors showed little emotion during the trial and told lawyers after that they intentionally tried to withhold visible reactions to testimony, Greenberg said.
Greenberg had asked jurors to award Singh’s family more than $75 million. Their verdict was about half of what he’d requested but more than Oncor had offered before trial, Greenberg said. He declined to reveal the specifics of the offers.
“But I’ll tell you they never even offered a fraction of this verdict,” Greenberg said.
Singh’s family felt vindicated, Greenberg said. After the trial, members of Singh’s family, who live in California, planned to visit the spot where he died.
Singh’s widow and three children were also represented by Ryan Zehl and Mike Streich of Zehl & Associates and Michael Lyons of Lyons & Simmons.
Oncor was represented by Clay A. Cosse, Deron Lynn Wade and Christopher Kratovil of Dykema and E. Leon Carter of Carter Arnett.
The case is Baldish Kaur, et al. v. Oncor Electric Delivery Company NTU LLC, et al., case number DC-21-12096.