Porsche Responds to Paul Walker Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Paul Walker (Courtesy Everett Collection)
A day after deceased actor Paul Walker’s daughter filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Porsche relating to her father’s 2013 death, Porsche has issued a statement defending itself, asserting that the crash that killed the Furious 7 actor was the result of “reckless driving and excessive speed.”
“As we have said before, we are very sad whenever anyone is hurt in a Porsche vehicle, but we believe the authorities’ reports in this case clearly establish that this tragic crash resulted from reckless driving and excessive speed,” the auto company told TheWrap in a statement Tuesday.
The denial of responsibility comes after Meadow Walker filed suit against Porsche in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming that the Porsche Carrera GT that Walker died in lacked safety features that could have either prevented the accident or allowed the actor to survive it.
Also Read: Paul Walker’s Daughter Sues Porsche Over Father’s Death
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department determined that the deadly crash was the result of “unsafe speed,” with traffic collision experts finding that the 2005 Porsche Carrera GT was traveling between 80 and 93 miles per hour when it collided with a power pole and multiple trees. The posted speed limit on the Santa Clarita, California, road where the crash occurred was 45 mph.
Despite the sheriff’s department report, the lawsuit contends that the car was only traveling 45 to 55 m.p.h. when it struck the pole.
Walker was a passenger in the vehicle and the wife of driver, Roger Rodas, has also filed suit against Porsche, maintaining that the crash occurred because of a failure in the car’s suspension system, as well as a lack of proper safety features.
In that suit, the automaker has denied wrongdoing, placing the blame on Rodas himself, and also suggests that the car was “misused or improperly maintained,” which “contributed to the alleged incident and to the injuries, loss, and damages, if any.”
The younger Walker is seeking unspecified damages in her suit.
