Drunk Driver Pays

A young woman, out riding her bike on Fort Lauderdale Beach, was run down by a hit and run driver who veered off the road. She suffered serious orthopedic and neurological injuries.

Her attorney, John Uustal, was able to connect the Defendant to the blood-spattered vehicle he was driving, and then connect that vehicle to the hit and run. Although there was no blood-alcohol test and there was no roadside sobriety test of any kind, Uustal gathered circumstantial evidence that the Defendant was drunk. The Court granted Uustal’s motion to allow a claim for punitive damages in order to punish the Defendant for driving drunk and leaving the scene. The Defendant’s insurance company offered to pay the full amount of the insurance coverage; however, the young woman wanted more. She wanted the Defendant to pay with his own money, and she wanted a written apology. She got both.