Eagle Ford Shale company slapped with $281 Million Jury Verdict in Dimmit County for wrongful death case
By: Jose G. Landa
Copyright 2013 Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
Heckmann Water Resources, an Eagle Ford Shale company, was slapped by one of the largest jury verdicts in the State of Texas for the amount of $281 Million by a Dimmit County, Texas jury in a wrongful death case on Thursday, December 5, 2013, in Carrizo Springs, Texas.
The Dimmit County jury awarded the $281 Million verdict to the family of the late Carlos Aguilar, a U.S. veteran, who was killed on May 29, 2012, on FM 133 in Dimmit County when a drive shaft broke off a truck owned by Heckmann Water Resources and struck Aguilar who was a passenger in a pick-up truck behind the Heckmann Water Resources tractor-trailer. Aguilar’s family also sued the driver of the Heckmann Water Resources tractor-trailer, Ruben Osorio Hernandez, but the Dimmit County jury only found Heckmann Water Resources negligent for wrongful death of Aguilar, absolving Osorio of any negligence. The lawsuit alleged that the drive-shaft of the tractor-trailer broke off from under the truck and went right through the windshield of the pick-up Aguilar was a passenger in and struck Aguilar killing him. The lawsuit further alleged that Heckmann Water Resources was negligent for causing the wrongful death of Aguilar because they had failed to properly maintain the tractor-trailer.
The record-breaking $281 Million Dimmit County jury verdict includes a $100 million punitive damages award against Heckmann Water Resources. Heckmann Water Resources is owned by Nuverra Environmental Solutions of Scottsdale, Arizona and has an office in Pleasanton, Texas. The family of Carlos Aguilar was represented by Laredo, Texas attorney Ronald Rodriguez while Heckmann Water Resources was represented by San Antonio, Texas attorney Rick Reyna.
The Eagle Ford Shale has not only brought riches and wealth to landowners and companies operating in the largest oil and gas exploration region in the United States, but has also caused civil litigation to skyrocket and boom in the 16 counties of the Eagle Ford Shale region benefitting the legal community.
