WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A Texas jury ruled that General Motors Co. (GM) wasn't liable for a 2011 accident that left Zach Stevens, then 19, with a brain injury after his 2007 Saturn Sky careened out of control on a rain-slick road and hit a pickup, killing the driver.
General Motors Co.'s victory in a Houston courtroom Thursday makes the carmaker three for three in trials related to an ignition-switch defect, but its legal entanglements may stretch on for years.
At least a dozen lawsuits are set for trial in the next year The next trial begins September 12 in New York federal court in a lawsuit over the 2011 crash of a Chevrolet Cobalt in Virginia. The company also faces lawsuits by car owners claiming economic losses because of the reduced value of their vehicles.
In 2014, GM recalled 2.6 million U.S. cars with ignition switches in danger of jostling off. Once the switch came off, the cars lost power and safety systems such as power steering, power brakes, air bags and seat belts were prevented from working as designed. The defect has been linked to at least 124 deaths and 275 injuries.
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