Judge cuts millions in fatal wreck award; will sanction lawyer, client

A roughly $8.6 million jury award to the husband of a woman killed in a 2007 wreck involving a concrete truck has been slashed by roughly half after a Charlottesville Circuit Court judge deemed the figure “grossly disproportionate” to the man’s injuries.

As first reported by NBC 29, Judge Edward Hogshire ruled Thursday that the amount awarded to Isaiah Lester in his case against Allied Concrete be cut by $4.13 million, leaving Lester with a total award of $4.45 million.

Hogshire also granted a motion by Allied and driver William Donald Sprouse, for monetary sanctions against Lester and his attorney, Matthew B. Murray, for their roles in withholding evidence in the case.

Murray resigned from practicing law in early July after court filings from Allied’s attorneys accused him of instructing Lester to delete photos from his Facebook page, including one in which Lester was wearing a T-shirt with the slogan “I [love] hot moms.”

The court will hold a hearing on Sept. 23 to determine the amount of the sanctions to be levied against Lester and Murray and the liability of Murray’s firm — Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen — for his actions.

The lawsuit between Lester and Allied was filed after a wreck on Route 53 in June 2007 that killed 25-year-old Jessica Lester.

Sprouse, an Allied employee, was driving a cement truck that collided with the couple’s Honda Accord. Jessica Lester died from her injuries later that month.

In December, a jury awarded Lester $2.35 million for personal injuries, and $6.23 million as the beneficiary of his wife’s estate. The jury also awarded $1 million to each of Jessica Lester’s parents.

Post-trial motions from the defense sought either the dismissal of Lester’s claims, a new trial or a lowering of the amount of damages awarded.

Hogshire chose to remit $4.13 million of Lester’s $6.23 million award, while leaving the awards for his injuries and the awards to the parents unchanged.

“When compared to the award given to the decedent’s parents, both of whom had a loving and long-lasting relationship with their daughter, it is clear that the award granted to Lester bears no reasonable relation to the damages proven by the evidence and that the award is so disproportionate to the injuries suffered that it is likely the product of an unfair and biased decision,” Hogshire wrote.

“The disproportionality of Lester’s award is further highlighted when seen in light of the fact that Lester had been married less than two years before his wife’s death … and that his behavior in the tragic aftermath was characterized by extensive social activities and travelling, both in the United States and overseas.”

Hogshire said that Murray’s actions at trial contributed substantially to the excessive verdict.

“As witnessed by the court … Murray injected passion and prejudice into the trial, shouting objections and breaking into tears when addressing the jury,” Hogshire wrote. “Most of Murray’s actions in this respect were suffered without objections from defense counsel, who focused their defense upon the denial of liability … and upon aggressive, but obviously ineffectual, attacks upon Lester’s credibility and character.”

Hogshire also found that Lester himself engaged in misconduct during the case by deactivating his Facebook account and then claiming he did not have one in response to a discovery request and claiming on the witness stand that he never deleted the Facebook photos.

Hogshire concluded that both Lester and Murray bear responsibility for withholding the Facebook photos that could have been used as evidence.

“Both Lester and Murray must be held accountable for the spoliation,” Hogshire wrote. “Lester did what Murray told him to do, deliberately delete Facebook photos that were responsive to a pending discovery request.”

Allegations that Murray violated the state code of professional responsibility will be referred to the Virginia State Bar, the ruling said, while allegations that Lester committed perjury will be referred to the Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.