Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso & Spier, P.A., Sues Ford Motor Co. for Failing to Install Stability Control on Ford Focus

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.--Families representing three victims of a fatal December 2006 crash, in which a Ford Focus went out of control and plunged into a lake near Fort Lauderdale, Fl., have sued Ford Motor Co. for failing to install electronic stability control (ESC) in the vehicle.

Negligence lawsuits filed on behalf of the families by Steve Rossman of the Miami law firm Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso & Spier, P.A., say that Ford chose to sell the 2005 vehicle without ESC, which was designed to prevent out-of-control accidents like the one mentioned, although Ford was well aware of the life-saving safety benefits.

“The central question is this: Why did Ford fail to put this vital safety technology in the car when it was proven to save lives?” Rossman said.

On Dec. 2, 2006, Bryan Bredy, 16, of Boca Raton, was driving his mother and two friends to church on the Sawgrass Expressway in northern Broward County when the family’s Ford Focus went out of control and plunged into a lake.

Passenger Jonathan Emmanuel, 16, managed to swim to safety but jumped back in to rescue his 13-year-old brother, Daniel, and Bryan’s mother, Marjory Poty, 42, who were trapped in the vehicle underwater. Other drivers saw the accident, stopped and helped pull Bryan, who was injured, to the bank.

When fire department divers arrived to rescue Jonathan, Daniel and Ms. Poty, it was too late. Jonathan died in the hospital later that day. Marjory Poty died a week later. Daniel survived, but today suffers from catastrophic brain damage.

(Daniel Emmanuel et al., v. Ford Motor Co., and Koons Ford, LLC , d/b/a World Ford of Pembroke Pines, Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward, Case No. 0722392; Odney Bredy et. al, v. Ford Motor Company, et al., Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward, Case No. 0722957; Rose-May Fluerime v. Ford Motor Co. et al., Seventeenth Judicial Circuit,Broward, filed Sept. 26.)

Electronic stability control systems, introduced in Europe in the 1990s, are gradually becoming standard in new vehicles sold in the United States. Such systems reduce the likelihood of fatalities in single-vehicle crashes by 56 percent, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso & Spier, P.A., concentrates exclusively on trial and appellate litigation. The firm's general tort practice places a major emphasis on products liability, construction, industrial and workplace accidents, medical malpractice, transportation and maritime accidents and general personal injury litigation. In addition, the firm has a substantial practice in railroad cases and a commercial litigation practice. The firm’s website is at www.rbrlaw.com.