Williams Grove Speedway not liable for driver's injuries, Cumberland County jury rules

John Westbrook, center, leaves the Cumberland County Courthouse in Carlisle with his family on July 17, 2014. Westbrook suffered injuries in a crash at Williams Grove Speedway that left him a quadriplegic in 2008. The prosecution is seeking medical care expenses, and they are also suing Williams Grove Speedway for pain and suffering. Christine Baker | cbaker@pennlive.com (CHRISTINE BAKER - PennLive.com)


CARLISLE — A jury's decision Monday in Cumberland County Court denied John Westbrook the financial security he was seeking for the rest of his life.
An eight-man, four-woman jury took about three hours to decide that Williams Grove Speedway in Monroe Township was not liable for injuries Westbrook suffered in a sprint-car racing accident Sept. 5, 2008.
Ruling on the first of a potential seven questions, the jury decided that Westbrook had released Williams Grove from liability when he signed a form before the Friday night race that led to his injuries.
Westbrook's attorney, David Inscho, had argued that since there were blanks on the release form when Westbrook signed it before entering the pit area, the form was not valid.
Brigid Alford, attorney for Williams Grove, presented the prevailing argument that speedway employees handled and filed the release form in a manner that eliminated any question that it was the form Westbrook signed on the night that he crashed.
"On behalf of my client, we feel that the evidence fully supported their verdict," Alford said outside the courtroom.
Because the jury ruled that Westbrook had released Williams Grove from liability, the jurors did not have to rule on the remaining six questions.
The last question would have addressed compensation. Westbrook was asking for nearly half a million dollars to cover medical expenses already paid, $6 million to $21 million for future expenses and $1.6 million to $6 million that Westbrook, 29, will lose in earnings over his lifetime.
Unlike a criminal case in which a jury cannot convict without a unanimous decision that a defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, the bar is lower in civil cases such as Westbrook's. Ten of the 12 jurors agreed on the final verdict.
Westbrook left the courtroom in silence, staring ahead when asked to comment.
"We're disappointed, obviously, by the verdict," Inscho said. "We'll evaluate the legal rulings to determine whether post-trial motions and appeal to Superior Court are warranted."