A jury has awarded nearly $82 million to a student tourist who lost consciousness and fell onto the tracks in a Brooklyn subway, resulting in the amputation of her left arm and leg.
Luisa Janssen Hager da Silva, from Brazil, was impacted by this incident back in 2016 when she was just 21 years old. In a federal court ruling last week, she received this significant amount in damages.
At the time of the accident, Da Silva was on the platform with her boyfriend when she unexpectedly fainted and fell onto the Atlantic Avenue tracks, where she was hit by a train.
Nearly ten years later, a jury found in favor of Da Silva, pointing out that the MTA had not adequately addressed the dangers of patrons falling onto the tracks.
Her lawsuit argued that the MTA has had 15 years of statistics indicating a “moral certainty” that individuals like her could fall onto the tracks unless proper safety measures, like platform-edge devices, were installed.
“Negligence is defined as failing to act in the face of a known and preventable danger,” stated David Ross, one of the attorneys representing Da Silva.
The MTA has since appealed this verdict, with representative Tim Minton expressing disagreement with the decision.
In a separate case from the previous year, another individual who lost an arm and leg in a similar incident while intoxicated initially received a $90 million award, which was later reduced to just under $40 million by a judge.
During the trial, it was revealed that the MTA had internal discussions about installing platform doors for free as early as 2011, with the aim of profiting from advertising on those structures.
Da Silva spent 24 days in Bellevue Hospital following her fall and the train’s impact. She was visiting her boyfriend when the tragic accident occurred, just hours after what appeared to be a normal day.
Her attorney, Bob Genis, mentioned that numerous companies have shown detailed plans capable of overcoming the technical hurdles to implement platform safety measures throughout the transit system.
One proposal, deemed “impressive” by the MTA, was submitted by Fabry Transit. Yet, according to Genis, no further research occurred after Da Silva’s accident, as the MTA terminated the grant intended for safety improvements.
Amid concerns over train strikes, data indicates that 241 individuals are expected to be hit by trains in 2023, as noted by MTA statistics.
Minton remarked that discussing historical decisions from decades past isn’t constructive, highlighting that the MTA has already installed various forms of platform fencing at 109 stations.
He added that the agency argued in court that at the time, the offer to install doors hadn’t been finalized.
Despite the arguments for platform doors, Minton claimed that physical feasibility and accessibility concerns inhibit their installation at most stations.
In hindsight, in 2012, the MTA included the legal costs of train strikes in a review of the benefits and challenges of platform safety installations.
Emails uncovered in a different lawsuit filed by victims of subway incidents revealed that legal fees relating to train strikes have reached $7 million annually over the past five years.
With train strikes on the rise, the statistics reflect a concerning trend for New York City’s transit system.
