Clifford Law Offices Receives $22 Million Settlement in Ford Explorer Rollover Case
Press Release, 07/19/2001Clifford Law Offices obtained $22 million in a settlement of a case involving the rollover of a Ford sport utility vehicle that left two teenagers dead and another rendered a quadriplegic.
The settlement was reached against Ford Motor Company, a Ford dealership and a tire retailer.
The 1992 Explorer SUV rolled over after being struck by the driver’s side rear wheel well by a Plymouth Sundance while travelling on the Eisenhower Expressway near Damen on June 23, 1992.
Robert Clifford and Richard Burke of Clifford Law Offices and George Bellas of Park Ridge alleged that the Ford Explorer had design defects that rendered it inherently unstable and that Ford’s own testing showed that the Explorer was prone to roll over with only minimal variations in tire size, type and air pressure. Clifford Law Offices also claimed the installation of size 235/75R15 all-season tires violated a warning in Ford’s Owner’s Manual that specifically stated that these tires should not be used as replacement tires.
"This incident is a tragic example of the dangers of unstable sport utility vehicles that are marketed to unsuspecting consumers as the ideal family vehicle," Burke said.
Two teenaged girls, Reena Boury and Suzanne Leder of Glen Ellyn, were ejected and killed. A third teenaged girl, Jessica Jones also from the western suburb, was rendered a quadriplegic, while a visiting medical student, Rannie Amiri of Columbus, Ohio, sustained loss of vision in one eye after both of them also were ejected from the vehicle.
The vast majority of the settlement funds were paid by Ford Motor Company of Detroit, Michigan, and Packey Webb Ford of Wheaton as well as Cassidy Tire Company of Chicago.
