Record Verdict for Psychiatric Injury

A 32 year old single mother of three was rear-ended on an expressway on-ramp. She suffered a minor whiplash injury, but developed PTSD and a severe anxiety disorder leading to panic attacks. The defense argued the anxiety was a result of extensive sexual abuse she experienced as a young girl, but the jury disagreed. The jury awarded her the largest verdict in Michigan for a purely psychiatric injury from an accident. (Barry v L & M Hardwood)