Woman secures $31.8 million from Smyrna concrete company in lawsuit

Erin McCullough
2 min read
25

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A woman who sued a concrete company over a 2020 accident involving one of their drivers was recently awarded a $31.8 million award by a Davidson County jury.

According to the injury firm Morgan & Morgan, Jennifer Gooch, 40, was awarded $31,894,263, which includes $30 million in punitive damages, by the jury in her lawsuit against Smyrna Ready Mix Concrete, LLC.

According to a release on the legal victory, Gooch was driving north on Eatons Creek Road in Nashville when a driver for the concrete company ran a stop sign and collided with the left side of her vehicle. Gooch’s car was totaled, and she suffered ankle and back injuries in the accident.

Driver sought after I-40 crash

In the first phase of the trial, Gooch was awarded $1,894,263.15 for her medical expenses, permanent injury, physical pain, mental suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. The second phase of the trial is where a jury awarded Gooch the $30 million punitive damages.

“Our client was permanently injured by someone who should never have been entrusted by Smyrna Ready Mix Concrete with driving a 27,000-pound cement truck,” said Morgan & Morgan partner Kelli Lester. “Ms. Gooch is a kind and compassionate person and a single mother of three who dedicates her life to public service, ensuring children in low-income households have access to educational opportunities. Her injuries continue to take a toll on her daily life, making it harder for her to care for her children and live pain free.”

Gooch reportedly rejected the company’s settlement offer of $70,000, according to attorneys Kelli Lester, Burke Keaty and Susan Neal Willey.

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“We are pleased the jury saw fit to not only award her a fair verdict for her expenses, pain and suffering, but also understood their responsibility to try to prevent the defendant’s reckless misconduct in the future by awarding severe punitive damages,” Keaty said. “No one wants to have a company sending a driver like this out on the road with a 27,000-pound deadly weapon where we all drive around with our families.”

The $30 million punitive damages award is one of the largest in Tennessee history, according to the firm.

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