This Ford Aspire sustained front end damage
Mitchell Mezyk is suing Ford Motor Company and a driver who rear-ended his vehicle for injuries he sustained in an auto accident last year in Belleville.
Mezyk, represented by Mary Mansfield Brauer of Cook, Ysursa, Bartholomew, Brauer & Shevlin of Belleville, is seeking at least $200,000 in damages.
In the suit filed March 11 in St. Clair County Circuit Court, Mezyk claims Lourdes Cuellar struck his 1996 Ford Aspire in the 900 block of South 74th Street in Belleville on April 14, 2004. After the impact, Mezyk claims his seatback collapsed causing him to be thrown into the back seat of the car, even though he was restrained.
Ford Motor Company is responsible because of a defective design, the complaint states.
The accident caused Mezyk "to be propelled into the rear seat of the car and to strike hard surfaces causing serious and permanently disabling injuries to his head and spinal cord."
Mezyk also claims he sustained great pain and mental anguish, large amounts of medical expenses, and has lost the ability to earn a wage.
According to the complaint, the car was defective and unreasonably dangerous because it would not adequately restrain a front seat passenger or driver in a rear-end collision, the suit claims. The seatback was only supported on one side and it failed to have dual recliners.
05 L 179 (20th Circuit)