High school senior Jordan Sanchez, participated in a work program for children of Sierra Dairy employees. Sanchez walked in a line with five teenagers, clearing a field of rocks and debris at a farm. The teenagers walked 10 feet in front of a front-end loader. When Sanchez bent down to pick up a large rock, the bucket of the front-end loader hit him and knocked him down, and then rolled over him, trapping him under its wheels and killing him. The driver was allegedly on his cellphone and not paying attention. The teenagers threw rocks at the cab of the front-end loader to get the driver’s attention to get him to stop the vehicle. Jordan’s brother, Alfonso, witnessed the accident. His brother died in his arms. The teenagers lacked safety vests. There was no supervisor or spotter to instruct the driver if the front loader needed to stop.
The Sanchez family filed the farm wrongful death lawsuit against Grass Roots Farming LLC in Texas 266th District Court. The lawsuit originally listed Alan D. Vander Horst, doing business as Sierra Dairy, and Vander Horst Enterprise as defendants. They settled the case for $1 million before trial. The jury verdict against Grass Roots included $32 million in damages, plus $2.9 million in prejudgment interest and $9,668 in court costs.
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