Florida jury awards $1.5M in wreck

Despite a pre-existing back condition, a Florida woman was awarded $1.5 million after she was injured in a car accident.

Sharon Morse, a postal worker, was stopped in a line of traffic when she was struck from behind by a car driven by an 18-year-old male. After the accident, Morse, who was 49 at the time, underwent two spinal surgeries 10 days apart. The first operation failed, leaving her in intense pain. After the second operation, she was still in pain and has been unable to go back to her job.

There was no question of liability, but the defense contended that the severity of her injuries was caused by a pre-existing condition, not the accident.

Defense lawyer Danny Methe noted that Morse - who is deaf - also suffered from vertigo and had filed for disability three months before the accident. Her pre-existing back condition and vertigo were the reasons she couldn't work - not the accident, he claimed.

Plaintiffs' attorney Jason Weisser acknowledged during a six-day trial that there was only a minimal impact from the accident, and that Morse had a pre-existing back condition called spondylolisthesis (slipped vertebrae). But he produced X-rays and medical testimony that her back condition had been asymptomatic for five years before the accident.