Posted on 01/16/2006 3:27:57 AM PST by beaversmom
ROGERSVILLE - The mother of a Rogersville boy who was injured in an accident last year on a new bicycle has filed a $900,000 lawsuit against the bike manufacturer and Wal-Mart, where the bike was purchased.
Elizabeth Burton, 625 S. Armstrong St., Rogersville, is the mother of Eric Burton, who was injured in an accident on Jan. 9, 2005. The boy's sister had received the Roadmaster Mountain Sport bicycle as a Christmas present from their father.
According to the lawsuit filed on behalf of the Burtons by Morristown attorney Gary E. Brewer, on Jan. 9 of last year Eric Burton was riding his sister's new bike on South Armstrong Street, but as he approached the Broadway Street intersection the brakes failed.
The bike didn't stop and continued onto Broadway Street into the path of an oncoming vehicle which had the right of way, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit further contends that as a result of the accident Eric Burton was severely injured, was hospitalized and will undergo continuing medical treatment.
Aside from Wal-Mart, the other defendants in the lawsuit include Pacific Cycle, Inc., based in Wilmington, Del., as well as its parent company Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc., which is to be served with the lawsuit in Columbus, Ind.
The lawsuit alleges that Pacific Cycle manufactured the bicycle in a defective condition, making it unsafe. The lawsuit also alleges that Wal-Mart assembled the bicycle.
"The defendant (Wal-Mart) assembled and sold the bicycle in an unsafe condition and design when they knew or should have known by the exercise of ordinary care that the bicycle would be subject to failure," the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit seeks $750,000 for injuries and damages and another $150,000 for medical expenses. The defendants have 30 days from the Jan. 6 filing date of the lawsuit to either file a response or seek a time extension.
>I guess when I had my restaurant I should have bought all my cheese and flour from a grocery store instead of a direct supplier<
You did not buy from a direct supplier.You bought from a wholesaler or a distributor.Walmart has succesfully become distributor,manufacturer and retailer on some items.They do this by refusing to deal with the manufactures representative (restraint of trade).This creates a 2 tier system for the average manufacturer.They need the mfg rep and distibutor system to do business with you but not Walmart.Unlike the restaurant business they are competing on the same branded item.Consumers can not comparison shop on restaurant items because of variations in quality,quanity and ingrediants.
the thing is that once the bike is hit by a car, it's going to be a mess. they will get an "expert" that will analyze the bike and offer his opinion that even though the bike is crushed, he can tell they didn't operate the right way.
All this will do is drive the cost of the bikes up at Walmart, get money to the lawyer, and encourage every shyster that can get hold of a bike wreck to sue the bike companies and the Walmarts...
this will essentialy do the opposite of what libs hope... this will kill the mom and pop bike shop and the evil Walmarts will be the only ones with the corporate deep pockets to sell bikes profitably.
The kid probably doesn't want to get in trouble (if he's conscious and can remember the accident) and will say , "yeah, I was squeezing the brake as I went into the intersection but they didn't work" not bothering to look before entering an intersection.... the driver of the car who either doesn't have liability insurance or deep pockets will divert blame by saying , "yeah, it was so scary. I saw this kid squeezing the brakes and his bike didn't stop so I hit him."
Lawyers suck almost as bad as Democratic politicians.....but the difference is like comparing two turds in a toilet... one brown, the other brown with corn kernels stuck in it...they're both turds.
The funny thing is that an intersection is the most dangerous place on the road, besides the shoulder, a park, coming out of a driveway, a parking lot..... in other words, "ya gotta be careful".
I'm planning a little 340 mile 3 day ride this spring....here's my bike....thank God it's relatively flat.
he's a rock star...therefore he was stoned or drunk... I bet.
what a mama's boy. He must be in his 60's by now and can't even ride a bike without getting a boo-boo
..ah... nothing like Wichita Falls in the summer......to melt your tires..hahahaha
red
I should have sued the dang Speed Play clips or Body Geometry shoe maker for defective clip release...Or laugh about it as a knuckle headed move....since I just COULDN'T have hurt myself by accident.hahahaha.
I mean, just the emotional distress, embarrassment(kids were laughing so hard) and loss of consortium (my wife was laughing so hard) should be worth a couple of hundred thousand.
If you are interested, check out the Bike Ride Across Georgia in June:
http://www.brag.org/brag.html
Do they still have that event?
Sounds like you're guessing, too.
So, since everyone's geussing...
Why are the parents less culpable than WAL-MART?
Maybe they should sue themselves for incompetence.
Why must we believe that the kid took the correct action to apply the type of brakes with which this bike is equipped?
Maybe the brakes DIDN'T "fail"; maybe the kids attempt at trying to apply them "failed". Since this was a different bike than he was used to riding the braking system could very easily be different from what he was used to. In a moment of panic, trying to apply the coaster brake on a bike with handbrakes is a guaranteed "fail" situation.
Of course, I'm just guessing...
At least THAT'S free.
I found that if I braced my legs in front of the pedals, I could use my shoes sliding across the ground as a brake. Hurt, tho, when I hit a bump.
Don't know how I made it to 48 riding bikes that lacked titanium, 24 gears, a seat that fit, flawless brakes, etc. Particularly when jumping my one speed bike off of any drop I could find less than 5 feet.
One 'jump' over 5 feet convinced me I might never have kids if I continued...
What if he applied the hand brakes and the cable slipped out of the caliper? It could be due to faulty assembly at Walmart or a faulty part supplied by the Mfgr. It's not the kind of failure a non-mechanically inclined parent or rider would necessarily notice. I don't have enough facts to assess the relative responsibilities of all the parties involved which is why I guess they have trials.
you should take this bike out for a ride... it's scary how light, fast and smooth it is. SCARY!! I've never ridden a lighter smoother bike... I'm sure that other will quibble but go to a real bicycle shop and test one out..the all carbon frame ones. You'll never buy or need another bike for road rides.
I'm so sorry for your loss. If he was hit while on the shoulder the other vehicle was not giving your brother clearance..but sometimes with a car coming head on and your brother on the shoulder (if that's where he was at) misjudging how far your rear view mirror sticks out, or just poor depth perception by the other drive probably caused the accident. I'm pretty much a rider that's a coward... I like to travel in packs and don't drive on long stretches without others around.... it still won't matter if you get a careless driver..just more casualties..
Another question> Did he actually apply the brakes?
Turn and lay down the bike (in front of the car) instead of braking?
What do they mean by "brakes fail" If I'm doing 20-30 mph going down a hill, brakes WON'T stop me when I get in front of a car.
On the other hand, the slave-labor Chinese (Walmart) brakes may not work.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.