Man injured in a Columbus crash gets major payout in $42 million civil trial

A man injured after colliding with a garbage truck while on his motorcycle has been awarded a major sum in a $42 million civil trial in Muscogee County, the man’s lawyer announced Wednesday.

Jonathon Wright sued GFL Environmental Holdings (US) INC.; GFL Environmental Services USA, INC.; and truck driver Roberto Aron following the crash on Dec. 7, 2021.

The lawsuit alleged Aron, who was driving a waste management truck for GFL, was exiting the CVS Pharmacy onto Miller Road when he “suddenly, negligently, and Without warning, ran the stop sign and blocked both eastbound lanes,” causing Wright to hit the commercial garbage truck.

The lawsuit said Wright followed the rules of the road at all times and that he “sustained permanent injuries for which the Defendants are liable.”

Wright’s attorney, Chris Breault, said his client was “catastrophically injured.” Wright lost part of his left leg, can’t bend his left arm at all, and is blind in his left eye, according to Breault.

In answers to the complaint in December 2022, attorneys for GFL Environmental Holdings and GFL Environmental Services said they were not responsible for Wright’s alleged injuries or damages. Attorneys for GFL didn’t immediately respond to request for comment after the jury’s verdict.

The answers to the lawsuit, filed into court records, also stated Roberto Aron “breached no duties owed to him in regard to the occurrence giving rise to the Complaint.”

The jury found the defendants 75% at fault and found Wright to be 25% at fault, according to a jury verdict form. This means Wright will receive 75% of the $42 million verdict, Breault said.

Breault said the verdict can help get Wright better prosthetics. One of Wright’s legs is longer than the other with his current prosthetics, according to Breault.

“The jury showed that they care about safety and they care about how they operate as a company,” Breault said. “I think they showed them that if you do hurt someone in this community you will be held accountable, even if it takes three years.”