Freightwaves, a leading provider of high-frequency data for the global supply chain, reported that on June 7, 2024 a Georgia jury awarded more than $47 million to the family of a 35-year-old trucking owner-operator who was killed in a crash in August 2017. A nuclear verdict is defined as any verdict of $10 million or more.
The jury found that Schneider National, headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and one of its former company drivers, Darryl Joachim, 29, of Lawrenceville, Georgia was 100% to blame in the wrongful death lawsuit.
During the course of the trial, the jury learned that Joachim’s motor vehicle record (MVR) report showed he had been involved in multiple crashes during his seven-month employment at Schneider. In addition, after four days of driving for Schneider, Schneider’s predictive analytics software reported that Joachim would be crashing soon. Schneider terminated Joachim in January 2018 when Joachim tested positive for methamphetamines during Schneider’s random drug screening.
The judge, Chief W. Alan Jordan, who presided over the case, stated in his final judgment that the victim’s family “shall recover all costs of this action from Schneider and Joachim as well as any applicable pre-judgment or post-judgment interest in accordance with the law.”
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