Memphis Police Officer Not Using Lights: Results in Verdict Against the City of Memphis

By Bailey & Greer, PLLC | January 22, 2015

This accident occurred around 10:00 p.m. on Weaver road in Memphis, Tennessee. We represented a lady who was T-boned by a Memphis police officer after she pulled out of a convenience store.

Witnesses at the scene testified that the Memphis Police officer was traveling at an extreme high rate of speed, around 80 mph. The speed limit was 40 mph. Witnesses also said that the officer was not using his headlights or blue lights. The officer testified that he was traveling the speed limit and that his headlights were on.

As soon as we were contacted by our client, we instructed the City of Memphis to preserve all relevant evidence from the wreck, including the headlights from the squad car. When we went to inspect the police vehicle at a later date, however, we found that the headlights had been removed. The trial court later ruled that the City of Memphis improperly destroyed evidence and ordered the City to pay for certain attorney fees and deposition fees.

After a three day trial, the judge ruled that the City of Memphis police officer was at fault for the accident, although the Court also found our client to be partially to blame. The City ultimately paid approximately $65,000 for medical bills, pain and suffering, attorney fees, court costs, and discretionary costs.

At the time of the trial, the officer had not been disciplined or punished in any way by the City of Memphis for his negligent conduct.

Verdict

DISCLAIMER: The results are specific to the facts and legal circumstances of each of the clients’ cases and should not be used to form an expectation that the same results could be obtained for other clients in similar matters without reference to the specific factual and legal circumstances of each client’s case.

Posted in Case Results