WOODLAND — A Yolo County jury awarded nearly $8 million in damages this week to a former truck driver whose leg was amputated following a Capay warehouse accident.
Monday’s verdict in favor of Bhupinder Singh and his wife Reena Rani came more than four months after the start of the Yolo Superior Court civil trial, which experienced repeated delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic that strictly limited the proceedings held inside the Woodland courthouse.
The trial stemmed from an accident that occurred on July 21, 2017, as Singh, then 37, picked up produce at a Capay warehouse owned by Capay Inc., which also does business under the names Capay Fruits and Vegetables and Farm Fresh to You.
According to Singh’s attorneys, Ricardo Echeverria and Stuart Chandler, a forklift operator “who failed to use proper caution in operating his vehicle” ran over Singh as his truck was being loaded with pallets of tomatoes, ultimately resulting in the amputation of Singh’s right leg below the knee.
The jury awarded a total of $10.5 million in damages but assigned 25 percent “comparative fault” to Singh in the mishap, which reduced the amount $7.9 million. Capay Inc.’s attorneys argued Singh should have gotten the forklift operator’s attention before walking through the active driving area.
“Bhupinder was going about doing his job like any other normal day when this catastrophic and life-altering accident happened,” Echeverria, the trial’s lead counsel, said in a news release.
Now under extensive medical care including the use of prosthetics, Singh no longer can work as a truck driver but currently is employed as a truck dispatcher, his attorneys said.
Co-counsel Chandler noted that Singh, who lives in Clovis, “has been unable to enjoy activities we all take for granted such as taking walks with his wife, playing with his children and helping around the home.”
Brent Anderson, lead defense attorney for Capay Inc. in the civil case, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Initially held during the first two weeks of March, the trial first was postponed March 16 as Yolo County issued a shelter-in-place order and court officials postponed numerous court cases order to reduce the number of people entering the court building and curb exposure to coronavirus.
Proceedings were scheduled to resume on May 11, then further delayed until June 29. At that point, two jurors were excused due to COVID-19 concerns.
The 12 remaining jurors heard the remainder of the three-week trial, deliberating over two days before reaching Monday’s verdict. Judge Samuel McAdam presided over the trial.
— Reach Lauren Keene at lkeene@davisenterprise.net or 530-747-8048. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene