PowerPoint Presentation 2018 C...SGT FONTALVO’S MOTHER. Page 95 16 Q. What -- do you recall what...
Transcript of PowerPoint Presentation 2018 C...SGT FONTALVO’S MOTHER. Page 95 16 Q. What -- do you recall what...
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LEGAL UPDATE:
LESSONS FROM FONTALVO V. SIKORSKY
ABC 2018Loews
Miami Beach
USDC, Southern District of California
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• HOW DID WE GET TO TRIAL
• TRIAL
• POST-TRIAL
• TAKEAWAYS
2
Topics of Discussion:
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THE ACCIDENT
3
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Landing gear safety pin
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NAVY INVESTIGATION
5
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• Landing gear energized by exposed wires
• Fontalvo should have recognized danger of stuck pin
• Significant Marine Corps training issue regarding landing
gear safety pins
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Left MainLanding Gear
Left Electronics Bay
Landing Gear Control Wire
Cockpit
Hydraulic Module
Landing Gear Hydraulic Line
367 inches of Kapton-----70 inches of Spec 55
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Landing gear
Down Valve
Landing gear
Up Valve
Looking Forward
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LANDING GEAR
DOWN VALVE
LANDING GEAR
UP VALVE
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DAMAGED SPEC-55 WIRE
BARE WIRE ON THE P494 PIN A
Repair splice
Repair splice
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DETERIORATED KAPTON WIRE
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DETERIORATED
KAPTON WIRE
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KAPTON
13
• Kapton wire required by US Navy specs
• 58 other Kapton caused incidents
• 3-Stage Navy field retro-fit program
• Similar CH-53E collapse incident in 2005
Government Contractor Defense
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Sgt Alex Fontalvo (posthumously promoted to Staff Sergeant):
• 24 years old
• 8 years in USMC/Airframe CDQAR
• Single
• One biological child
• Fiancée (Tashina Amador) daughter was alleged to be a
Fontalvo dependent.
PLAINTIFFS
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ATTEMPTS TO SETTLE AND PRE-TRIAL MOTIONS
• Oct 2016 – $15 million demand
• Dec 2016 – offer of judgment (1.1 million)
• Nov 2017 - Motion For Summary judgment (denied)
Demand increased to $30 million
• Jan 2018 – mandatory settlement conference
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TRIAL
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JUDGE
17
Hon. Gonzalo Curiel
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JURY
18
8 (started with 9)
• 6 homeowners
• 7 some connection to military
• 1 retired Navy Chief
• 1 private pilot
• 1 attorney (insurance defense and plaintiffs work)
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PLAINTIFFS’ CASE
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PLAINTIFFS’ OPENING STATEMENT TO THE JURY: ITS SPEC-55
“IF YOU DON’T FIND ITS SPEC-55, THROW US OUT OF COURT.”
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MANUFACTURING
AND
DESIGN
DEFECTS
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o PLAINTIFFS’ EXPERTS:
LEE COFFMAN – SPEC 55 DAMAGE
JOHN BLOOMFIELD – CAUSE OF MISHAP/ALTERNATIVE DESIGN
o DOWN WIRE ENERGIZED UP WIRE
o UP/DOWN WIRES COMMINGLED
o UP/DOWN CONTROL VALVES ON SAME SIDE OF MODULE
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PLAINTIFFS’ KEY
DEMONSTRATIVE
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PAGE 121 LINE 24
“Because engineering logic, more likely than not, a high degree of probability -- the only
way that this accident could have happened is that the up wire…had 28 volts and
current applied to it for it to happen. And the only wire that's in the vicinity is
the down wire, which could normally have 28 volts on it. They're all together,
they're all commingled and they're all compromised in their insulation.”
-JOHN BLOOMFIELD
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PAGE 185 LINE 13
“I would not bundle the up and the down wire in the same
bundle because if they are and you have a compromise, this is
the result, the accident.”
"Likewise, the utility module itself could just as easily, and
for the same cost, have been designed with the up and down
control valves on opposite sides”
-JOHN BLOOMFIELD
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-USMC LT COL IN CHARGE OF INVESTIGATION
• Spec-55 was the “culprit”
PLAINTIFFS CASE IS HELPED BY MARINE
CORPS TESTIMONY:
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TESTIFIED THAT FONTALVO DID NOTHING WRONG
• USMC corporal that served with Fontalvo
• USMC captain that trained Fontalvo
PLAINTIFFS CASE IS HELPED BY MARINE
CORPS TESTIMONY:
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Page 40
6 Q Okay. Do you ever -- do you recall,
7 during your training of Sergeant Fontalvo, whether
8 you discussed the landing gear -- the landing gear
9 system with him?
10 A I do not recall.
11 Q Okay. Do you recall ever discussing the
12 landing gear safety pin with him?
13 A I do not recall.
MH-00039-06
USMC CAPTAIN
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Page 42
7 Q As you sit here today, do you know what to
8 do if you encounter a stuck landing gear safety pin?
9 A As I sit here today, no, sir. Obviously,
10 after what happened, I would change what I would –
11 if I felt one now, I would never touch it. But we
12 were never instructed. It was not common knowledge,
13 if you felt, you know, something that was stuck, not
14 to pull it out.
15 Q Okay. So when you were working as an
16 airframe mechanic, you don't believe you were ever
17 instructed as to what to do if you encountered a
18 stuck landing gear safety pin?
19 A No, sir.
MH-00039-06
USMC CAPTAIN
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PLAINTIFFS
USED LOTS OF
EMOTION
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Page 92
Q. I want to ask you some questions about the incident.
So at any time you want to take a break, just take a break.
A. Okay.
Q. How did you first find out about the incident?
A. They -- two marines came to my -- two
marines came to my house around 10:30 at night.
Q. And what do you -- what do you recall
they told you?
A. My husband opened the door and then --
and then he hand me a paper and he's telling me that
my son (crying) was killed in a -- an accident and he
got pinned under the helicopter or something like
that.
NF-00092-15
SGT FONTALVO’S MOTHER
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Page 95
16 Q. What -- do you recall what they told
17 you about what happened when you were there at the
18 helicopter?
19 A. I don't recall that much. I just --
20 they just showed us around and showed -- one of the
21 marines there showed us what he's supposed to do;
22 that they pull a pin. It looks like a -- he tried to
23 pull it out. (Crying.) It looks like it got stuck.
24 He tried again and the tires went up and --
25 Q. Did they --
1 A. -- then it fell on top of him and he
2 got (crying) -- he got stuck in there for two hours.
3 They couldn't lift that thing up.
NF-00092-15
SGT FONTALVO’S MOTHER
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PLAINTIFFS’ ECONOMIST:
$1.5 MILLION
CROSS: ADMITTED CALCULATION SHOULD BE
CLOSER TO $1 MILLION
33
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DEFENDANTS’ CASE
34
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GOVERNMENT CONTROL
35
John Wakefield:
• Former Sikorsky CH-53E Production Manager
• Former USMC CH-53E helicopter pilot
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WAKEFIELD: GOVERNMENT CONTROL
36
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Page 76
1 I forgot to ask
2 you earlier…how many engineers work here
3 at NAVAIR?
4 A At Pax River I believe about 17,000.
5 Q 17,000?
6 A People.
7 Q How many with engineers degrees?
8 A Whew, I have no idea.
9 Q Over a hundred?
10 A Yes.
11 Q Over a thousand?
12 A Definitely into the thousands.
13 Q Into the thousands, okay. And those are
14 all engineers that work on aircraft systems?
15 A Correct.
16 Q And the various subsystems that we
17 talked about earlier, so could be landing gear,
18 electrical, propulsion, whatever, right?
19 A Correct.
LL-00075-25
GOV WITNESS: CONFIRMS GOV CONTROL
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Page 115
11 Q Okay. For the CH-53E, right, it would have
12 generated, it would have provided drawings to NAVAIR
13 for the CH-53E?
14 A Correct.
15 Q Right, for all of the subsystems?
16 A Correct.
17 Q NAVAIR would have reviewed those
18 drawings?
19 A Correct.
20 Q Analyzed those drawings?
21 A Correct.
22 Q And if were any changes that they
23 wanted to make, their engineers would have then
24 gone back to Sikorsky with those changes, correct?
25 A Correct.
LL-00115-11
GOV WITNESS: CONFIRMS GOV CONTROL
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TAUGHT JURY ABOUT:
39
Jim Knox – electrical system expert
• CH-53E LG SYSTEM
• KAPTON DAMAGE
• WHY PLAINTIFFS’ SPEC-55 THEORY IS
WRONG
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Drag Strut/Hydraulic Landing Gear Operation
KNOX MADE USE OF ANIMATION:
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KEY TRIAL DEMONSTRATIVE:
Jury came out of
their seats to view
its operation.
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MARINE CORPS MAINTENANCE
42
Rob Ostrowski
• current Sikorsky employee
• 18 year USMC CH-53E maintainer and crew chief
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MARINE CORPS MAINTENANCE
43
Rob Ostrowski – testified about:
• NAVAIR and USMC CH-53E maintenance
• Wire damage due to poor maintenance
• Replacement of utility module in accident helicopter
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Page 50
8 Q So during maintenance that's done on an
9 aircraft, that can occasionally damage a wire, correct?
10 A Yes.
11 Q And what are the ways in which that
12 maintenance can damage wire?
13 A Well, from my experience and what I've seen
14 is it's not the electricians or the avionics
15 technicians who have problems with the wiring. Because
16 that's what they're trained in. It's, like, the
17 hydraulic servicing guys. And they would replace a
18 line and they move the wiring out of place to get to
19 the unit. And they put it back, but they don't know
20 exactly what they're doing. So they won't necessarily
21 put it back correctly.
MM-00050-07
GOV WITNESS:
CONFIRMS USMC MAINTENANCE ISSUES
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Page 59
4 Q So, Martin, before we broke, we were
5 talking about maintenance that caused problems or
6 damaged wiring. So maintenance procedures that would
7 ultimately lead to wiring being damaged, correct?
8 A Correct.
9 Q Now, when we were talking about that
10 subject, were you limiting that just to Kapton wiring,
11 or did those kinds of problems occur with all types of
12 wiring?
13 A That's all types of wiring.
14 Q So, for example, you've mentioned that
15 you've seen hydraulic system guys not put wiring back
16 in the correct place. Was that just limited to Kapton,
17 or have you seen that with other types of wiring?
18 A I've seen that with all types of wiring.25 Q And we talked about nicks in wiring where
1 the insulation is taken away down to the conductor.
2 Have you seen that with other types of
3 wiring as well?
4 A Yes.
MM-00059-04
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Page 51
10 Q Would you read -- would you read what you wrote
11 from Mitch on down to signing it Aldo?
12 A Yeah. Good morning. My thoughts, it could be
13 that we, including myself, are so used to seeing the Kapton
14 in that degraded condition that it looks normal to us. I
15 have suggested a bulletin to replace that wire to the up
16 solenoid next phase for all aircraft. This is something
17 the fleet can implement now even without a bulletin and
18 signed it Aldo.
19 Q Did that ever happen?20 A No, I don't believe so.
AB-00051-10
GOV WITNESS: POOR CONDITION OF KAPTON
IS THE NORM
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Page 93
3 Q Do you know why a system safety risk
4 assessment needed to be done at this point in time,
5 2009?
6 A There was always a risk assessment done
7 that was part of the -- that's how the 2B came about
8 and how it all changed in time. But around this time
9 Rear Admiral Eastburg became the PEOA and --
10 Q Let's stop there.
11 What is a PEOA?
12 A Program executive officer for air programs…
24 …when Rear Admiral Eastburg took over
25 PEOA, he insisted on having an actual signed risk
1 acceptance for every risk that we had in the program,
2 across the PEO, not just our program.
WM-00093-03
GOV WITNESS: CONFIRMED KNOWLEDGE
OF CH-53E WIRE PROBLEMS
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9 Q But the risk that's being accepted here --
10 what is the risk that's being accepted?
11 A To -- acknowledgment that there is -- a
12 hazard had been identified. This is the probability
13 and consequence of that hazard. Do we concur that it's
14 okay to continue to operate aircraft with this known
15 hazard.
16 Q And everyone that signed this is indicating
17 that -- or everyone that signs this, their response to
18 that question is yes?
19 A Yes.
WM-00093-03
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WM-00093-03
3 that they understand the risks associated with
4 continuing to operate the CH-53 Echo. And one of those
5 risks is the -- is that you may have an inadvertent
6 landing gear retraction while the aircraft is on the
7 ground, correct?
8 A Yes.
9 Q They understand that that's a risk. And
10 they are saying that this aircraft is going to continue
11 to operate even with that known risk, correct?
12 A Yes.
1 Q So Brigadier
2 General Davis and Rear Admiral Eastburg are stating
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Q When did you first become aware that if the
landing gear safety pin on a CH-53E helicopter
offers resistance, you shouldn't pull it?
A That was one of the things they taught when
they talked about the landing gear pins.
MARINE WITNESS: FONTALVO TRAINING
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PAGE 17 LINE 5
landing gear safety pin offers resistance, you
should not try to force it out or pull it out?
A Yes, sir.
MARINE WITNESS: FONTALVO TRAINING
Q You gave some instruction to Sergeant
Fontalvo when you were both stationed in
Okinawa, correct?
A Yes.
Q Did you teach him both of those things?
A Yes, sir.
Q Specifically did you teach him that if the
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CLOSING ARGUMENTS
52
• Plaintiffs asked jury to award $47 million
$1 million economics
$46 million non-economics
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VERDICT
53
• For the Defense in 80 minutes
• Manufacturing: No defect
• Design: Found defect under “consumer
expectation” test but found defect was not
a substantial factor
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POST-TRIAL
54
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• Court awarded Sikorsky $41K costs
• Motion for JMOL and New Trial
• Settlement:
o Less than Dec 2016 offer of judgment
o Plaintiffs’ attorneys waived all fees
o Trial judgment remains in place
55
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TAKEAWAYS
56
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• Jurors in federal court taken from voting records
57
REMOVAL TO FEDERAL COURT
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ACCESS TO CLIENT EMPLOYEES
EARLIER THE BETTER
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IMPORTANCE OF VIDEO DEPOSITIONS
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DO A MOCK TRIAL
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DURING TRIAL:
• Keep the story focused
• Use engaging demonstratives – don’t have
to be flashy
• Be flexible: Don’t be afraid to remove/add
witnesses
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WHAT JURY SAID:
62
• Plaintiffs’ case:
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WHAT JURY SAID:
63
• Defendants’ case:
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WHAT JURY SAID:
64
• Defendants’ case:
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Questions?