Court upholds $26.5M award to family of Texas man who died after USPS truck crash
A federal appeals court has upheld a $26.5 million judgment for the family of a North Texas man who was severely injured in a crash with a U.S. Postal Service truck and later died.
In a ruling on Friday, May 16, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit agreed with the original judgment that was handed down by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Fort Worth during the trial in 2023, according to court documents.
In May 2018, Micheal Le was backing out of his driveway in Grand Prairie when a USPS driver reversed down the street and hit his car.
“The USPS worker was delivering mail in the rain on a residential street and could not fit a parcel into a community mailbox,” according to a news release from attorney Kyle Pugh’s law firm. “Instead of exiting her vehicle and walking the parcel back two houses to the intended residence, she reversed her postal truck, striking Le’s vehicle.”
Following the first collision, Le’s car accelerated for about six seconds and crashed into a fence and then into his neighbor’s house.
Pugh said because the first collision was low impact, at less than five mph, the responding police officer put Le at fault.
But the U.S. District Court found that the first crash caused a spinal fracture in Le, leading to “transient neurological dysfunction” that disrupted motor control in his right leg and foot. This prevented him from removing his foot from the accelerator, causing the second crash, according to court documents.
Court case was ‘an uphill battle’
Le had a difficult diagnosis before the accident of ankylosing spondylitis, which is a condition that results in very brittle bones, and as a result of the accident, he became quadriplegic, Pugh told the Star-Telegram.
Following the accident, Le was hospitalized, underwent complex spinal surgery, and developed severe complications, including infections, Pugh said.
“You’re driving out of your driveway on a rainy day to go pick up your son and then in the blink of an eye, your whole life is upside down, all because of the negligence of a postal worker who reversed her truck,” Pugh said.
Le ultimately died from complications of his injuries while the case was on appeal. The money awarded by the court now will go to his estate.
“When I got the case, you know, all the facts appeared to be against him,” Pugh said. “I went to meet with him, and spent an afternoon with him and learned the true facts.”
“It was very much an uphill battle,” Pugh said.
Ben Lewis, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney who represented the USPS in the appeal, did not immediately respond to an email from the Star-Telegram requesting comment.
The government’s attorneys argued that Le was at fault for his injuries and that he was not wearing a seat belt and caused the second impact into his neighbor’s house.
There were conflicting reports about the seat belt, according to court documents. Le’s attorneys said he was wearing it, and they presented evidence that the initial crash with the postal truck caused his spinal injuries and made the second crash unavoidable.
Pugh said many expert witnesses testified during the 2023 trial including board-certified radiologists, two orthopedic surgeons, a life care planner, a physical engineer and an accident reconstructionist.
“It was a very complex medical legal puzzle, and we presented it systematically to the courts, and they were able to understand this complexity,” he said.
For seven years, Le was in and out of the hospital, suffering from multiple serious conditions including quadriplegia, respiratory failure, pneumonia and recurring infections, Pugh said.
“He couldn’t eat normally and needed food delivered directly to his stomach,” Pugh said. “His master bedroom was converted into a medical suite.”
Le’s eldest son, who was in high school at the time, gave up college to stay home and care for him, Pugh said.
“Mr. Le died while the appeal was pending, which was very sad, but he took great comfort in testifying at trial and understanding that the judge believed his testimony and awarded him the judgment,” Pugh said. “I’m just sorry that he is not alive to see the judgment affirmed by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.”
The district court found the USPS driver negligent and awarded Le $23.9 million for medical expenses, loss of earnings and other damages.
Le was awarded $2.6 million for loss of consortium and services, according to court documents.
“Judge O’Connor conducted a very fair trial and was very attentive and very much understood the legal issues and the medical issues and all of the expert witnesses,” Pugh said. “He gave us his full attention and arrived at a very rational and measured judgment.”