Parents of Star Trek Actor File Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Fiat Chrysler

by Steph Willems

Published: August 3rd, 2016

parents of star trek actor file wrongful death lawsuit against fiat chrysler

The parents of Anton Yelchin filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in a Los Angeles court yesterday, alleging that the automaker knew about the defective gear shift design in their son’s Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Yelchin, the actor who played Chekov in the Star Trek film franchise, died in late June after his vehicle, equipped with FCA’s maligned Monostable shift lever, rolled down his driveway and pinned him against a gate post. The 2015 Grand Cherokee was found in neutral, with the engine running.

Yelchin’s vehicle was one of 1.1 million Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler products recalled by FCA in April to put a stop to roll-away complaints. A dealer document later revealed the automaker’s plan to install an “Auto Park” feature — basically, a reprogramming of four key control modules.

According to Bloomberg, the lawsuit alleges that FCA knew about the problems with the shift lever, which led some drivers to exit their vehicles after mistakenly believing the vehicle was in park.

The automaker responded to the lawsuit, stating, “FCA US LLC extends its sympathies to the Yelchin family for their tragic loss. The company has not been served with a lawsuit and cannot comment further at this time.”

FCA, which is also the subject of a class-action lawsuit, announced it would conduct a investigation into the incident following news reports of Yelchin’s death. The “Auto Park” fix was just rolling out at the time of the accident, and it’s believed Yelchin’s Jeep hadn’t undergone the repair.

#AntonYelchin #Fca #FiatChryslerAutomobiles #Jeep #JeepGrandCherokee #LawAndOrder #Lawsuit #Safety

Steph Willems

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16 of 42 comments

FreedMike on Aug 03, 2016

OK, so the car appears to be blame...but wasn't there a recall on this? I'd be curious to see if Yelchin's car was fixed in that recall. I'm assuming it was, because otherwise the suit would be dismissed out of hand.

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- 5280thinair on Aug 03, 2016
  
  I don't think it's that cut-and-dried. Assuming the owner received the recall notice, was it worded in such a way as to make the danger clear (e.g. "Drivers used to traditional automatic transmission gear selectors may inadvertently leave the car in gear or in neutral when they think they've selected park, and may therefore pose a risk of injury or death to the driver or others in the vicinity")? If the recall notice was significantly less direct, or the dealers weren't ready or had a backlog so the customer had to wait to get it fixed, a jury might well find in favor of the owner's family. In the world of civil litigation there is no onus to prove "beyond a reasonable doubt." It's the plaintiff vs. defendant, and in a case like this the plaintiff's legal team probably won't have a hard time convincing a jury the deceased acted reasonably within the expectations of operating his motor vehicle. I suspect Chrysler will try very hard to settle as they won't want any other similar plaintiffs to have this case to refer to.
  
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- Brn on Aug 03, 2016
  
  The family claims the recall notice arrived about a week after the incident.
  
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- EBFlex on Aug 03, 2016
  
  "OK, so the car appears to be blame" How so? He chose to exit the car and run behind it without securing it.
  
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- Sgeffe on Aug 04, 2016
  
  @EBFlex Probably stepped out to grab the mail or close the gate, vehicle didn't start rolling right away, and when it did start rolling, the driver didn't see it coming until it was too late.
  
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EBFlex on Aug 03, 2016

Makes sense. Chrysler clearly made him negligently exit his vehicle before setting it and then Chrysler made him run into the path of his rolling vehicle (that he failed to secure). This is a frivolous lawsuit. Your kid died because he made a number of mistakes. Sad but true. Chrysler had nothing to do with it.

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- VoGo on Aug 03, 2016
  
  Given how FCA fights every recall tooth and nail, the fact that they jumped to recall 1.1 MILLION vehicles is telling. Why are you such an apologist for a Dutch-English importer?
  
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- EBFlex on Aug 03, 2016
  
  @VoGo I'm not an apologist. Just a realist. And I don't know why they recalled the shifter. It works as designed and works extremely well. Just because Chrysler recalled the shifter doesn't mean it was the right thing to do. If people cannot figure out such a simple shifter, then the complexities of driving are clearly too much for them and they should not be allowed to drive.
  
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- VoGo on Aug 03, 2016
  
  @EBFlex If you were a realist, you would recognize reality and stop using the term 'Chrysler' to describe a corporation. Those days are long gone.
  
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- EBFlex on Aug 03, 2016
  
  @VoGo Well then by that measure we may as well just say that Jeep recalled the shifter. Nice to see you have logical retorts rather than just arguing semantics.
  
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- VoGo on Aug 04, 2016
  
  @VoGo But Jeep didn't recall the shifter. Jeep is just a brand to con consumers into thinking that a Dutch-British import company is selling "American" vehicles. It appears to work.
  
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Old Man Pants on Aug 03, 2016

Earwig made him do it. I mean the guy was a weapons officer. He should've known how to secure stuff.

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- VoGo on Aug 03, 2016
  
  KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHNN! Wait. I thought Checkoff got the brain eating worm stuck in his ear.
  
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- Roadscholar on Aug 04, 2016
  
  @VoGo Didn't Capt. Kirk get the worm?
  
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- BobinPgh on Aug 05, 2016
  
  @roadscholar No, it was Chekov and another officer. But that was in the original "Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan" with Ricardo Montalban. I was disappointed with Star Trek Into Darkness because to me, only Ricardo Montalban can be Khan.
  
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Jdmcomp on Aug 04, 2016

Very like the shifter in the new Mercedes and I do find it a puzzle but had no problems because I know how to drive, period. I think this was a result of someone not pay attention to the task at hand. Dont care for FCA designs but this is not that bad.

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