...that this is costing me $$$$! It's still cheaper than fixing TOYOTAS!
Think of all the money we've saved!
Car dealer settles Lexus deaths lawsuit
Trial was set to begin this week in deaths of CHP Officer Mark Saylor and family
San Diego — A wrongful-death lawsuit against a former El Cajon Lexus dealer accused of contributing to the fiery deaths of a California Highway Patrol officer and his family settled days before trial was set to begin in Los Angeles.
Chris Lastrella, 38, who died in a bizarre high-speed car crash in Santee. He was killed alongside his sister, Cleofe Saylor, her husband, CHP Officer Mark Saylor, and the couple's 13-year-old daughter, Mahala. The settlement between the parents of the victims and car dealer Bob Baker is the latest in a case that has received worldwide attention over unintended acceleration problems in Toyota and Lexus vehicles.
The terms of the settlement, including the amount, are confidential, and none of the parties involved would discuss the agreement.
A spokeswoman with the Los Angeles County Superior Court confirmed that the parties called the court Thursday to say that they had settled the case. Trial had been set to begin Monday.
It is the second settlement that the parents of both the officer and his wife have received in the lawsuit. In 2010 they accepted a $10 million payout from Toyota.
The Aug. 28, 2009, crash in Santee set off a ripple effect that has cost Toyota billions of dollars in settlement payouts and led to massive recalls.
The crash occurred as California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor was driving the loaner Lexus ES350 from Bob Baker Lexus El Cajon with his wife, Cleofe, their daughter, 13-year-old Mahala, and his brother-in-law, Chris Lastrella.
In a 911 call as the car was barreling north on state Route 125, Lastrella reported the accelerator was stuck and brakes weren't working. The call cut off as the Lexus struck a Ford Explorer then launched into a ditch at Mission Gorge Road and erupted into flames.
An investigation pointed to a floor mat as a likely culprit. Since 2007, Toyota had known about the possibility that some floor mats, installed incorrectly, could make the accelerator stick, according to an investigation by the U.S. Justice Department. Lexus is a division of Toyota.
The lawsuit against Bob Baker Lexus alleged the dealership received warnings about such problems from Toyota but ignored them. Carpet mats that came with the Lexus ES350 were removed to keep them clean and replaced with oversized rubber mats that belong in an SUV, according to a trial brief filed by the plaintiffs.
Three days before the Saylor crash, a Bob Baker customer had returned his loaner with complaints that the floor mat had trapped the accelerator, but the dealership did nothing, the brief says.
Attorneys for Bob Baker Lexus argued that the car model was defective because it lacked clearance between the floor and pedal, lacked an override braking system and had confusing shifting and ignition button designs. Baker sold the El Cajon Lexus dealership a few years ago, telling U-T San Diego in an earlier interview that he was upset at Toyota's handling of the matter.
After the deaths, Toyota issued a flurry of recalls totaling 10 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles to fix problems with ill-fitting floor mats, sticky pedals and faulty brakes.
Toyota agreed to take a $1.1 billion charge against its earnings to cover settlements to owners who claimed to have suffered economic loss related to the recalls. The company also has settled about 200 wrongful-death and injury lawsuits.
But the Justice Department determined that wasn't enough. The government ordered the automaker last March to pay a record $1.2 billion for hiding knowledge that similar problems were present in other vehicle models, as well as failing to disclose to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration that improperly manufactured pedals were also a major threat.
From 2010 to 2012, Toyota has also paid more than $66 million in fines for delays in reporting safety problems.
The terms of the settlement, including the amount, are confidential, and none of the parties involved would discuss the agreement.
A spokeswoman with the Los Angeles County Superior Court confirmed that the parties called the court Thursday to say that they had settled the case. Trial had been set to begin Monday.
It is the second settlement that the parents of both the officer and his wife have received in the lawsuit. In 2010 they accepted a $10 million payout from Toyota.
The Aug. 28, 2009, crash in Santee set off a ripple effect that has cost Toyota billions of dollars in settlement payouts and led to massive recalls.
The crash occurred as California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor was driving the loaner Lexus ES350 from Bob Baker Lexus El Cajon with his wife, Cleofe, their daughter, 13-year-old Mahala, and his brother-in-law, Chris Lastrella.
In a 911 call as the car was barreling north on state Route 125, Lastrella reported the accelerator was stuck and brakes weren't working. The call cut off as the Lexus struck a Ford Explorer then launched into a ditch at Mission Gorge Road and erupted into flames.
An investigation pointed to a floor mat as a likely culprit. Since 2007, Toyota had known about the possibility that some floor mats, installed incorrectly, could make the accelerator stick, according to an investigation by the U.S. Justice Department. Lexus is a division of Toyota.
The lawsuit against Bob Baker Lexus alleged the dealership received warnings about such problems from Toyota but ignored them. Carpet mats that came with the Lexus ES350 were removed to keep them clean and replaced with oversized rubber mats that belong in an SUV, according to a trial brief filed by the plaintiffs.
Three days before the Saylor crash, a Bob Baker customer had returned his loaner with complaints that the floor mat had trapped the accelerator, but the dealership did nothing, the brief says.
Attorneys for Bob Baker Lexus argued that the car model was defective because it lacked clearance between the floor and pedal, lacked an override braking system and had confusing shifting and ignition button designs. Baker sold the El Cajon Lexus dealership a few years ago, telling U-T San Diego in an earlier interview that he was upset at Toyota's handling of the matter.
After the deaths, Toyota issued a flurry of recalls totaling 10 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles to fix problems with ill-fitting floor mats, sticky pedals and faulty brakes.
Toyota agreed to take a $1.1 billion charge against its earnings to cover settlements to owners who claimed to have suffered economic loss related to the recalls. The company also has settled about 200 wrongful-death and injury lawsuits.
But the Justice Department determined that wasn't enough. The government ordered the automaker last March to pay a record $1.2 billion for hiding knowledge that similar problems were present in other vehicle models, as well as failing to disclose to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration that improperly manufactured pedals were also a major threat.
From 2010 to 2012, Toyota has also paid more than $66 million in fines for delays in reporting safety problems.
Previous: Scars from crash remain raw | Toyota admits hiding defects, fined $1.B
Staff writer Karen Kucher contributed to this report.
JUST MY OPINION...AT THE MOMENT!
