By: Patrick Danner
Source: San Antonio Express-News (TNS)
Feb. 28—The family of San Antonio oil executive and philanthropist John William Hayes has been awarded $5.4 million by a jury over his 2023 death when a dump truck hauling asphalt slammed into his BMW sedan.
Widow Amy Hayes and daughter Hayden Hayes sued three parties—San Antonio’s H.L. Zumwalt Construction Inc.; Oscar Steven Mendoza, doing business as COM Transport; and MN Trucking LLC of Niederwald—alleging their negligence caused his death in the crash at Northwest Loop 1604 and Interstate 10 frontage road.
Jurors deliberated more than four hours Thursday before voting 10-2 to award Amy Hayes $4.7 million and Hayden Hayes $700,000 for past and future monetary losses, mental anguish and the loss of companionship.
Jurors assign percentages of responsibility
Just who’ll end up paying the family is likely to be the next battle in the case.
That’s because jurors assigned percentages of responsibility for John Hayes’ death to Zumwalt and MN Trucking despite finding that neither was negligent. Zumwalt was held 15% responsible and MN Trucking 30%. The jury found COM Transport, which is no longer in business, was negligent and put its responsibility at 55%.
The jury also found the dump truck driver, Jesus Alberto Delgado-Garcia, was operating it for the benefit of Zumwalt and under its control. Given that, the family could seek to collect damages from Zumwalt under the legal doctrine of “vicarious liability,” which holds an employer responsible for an employee’s actions that occur on the job.
State District Judge Norma Gonzales presided over the trial, which took eight days.
The accident that killed John William Hayes
On Jan. 17, 2023, Delgado-Garcia was northbound on North Loop 1604 West when he ran a red light at the intersection with the Interstate 10 access road, his asphalt-laded dump truck T-boning Hayes’ vehicle, according to the San Antonio Police Department.
The collision sent both vehicles about 40 yards down the access road before Hayes’ sedan hit a concrete pillar. Hayes, 63, died at the scene. Delgado-Garcia was ejected from the truck, which overturned. He was taken to University Hospital, where he died. He was 25.
Hayes was president of Activa Resources LLC, an owner and operator of oil and gas wells in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. He also served on the boards of the San Antonio Area Foundation and Santikos Enterprises. He was a founding board member of the Somerset Education Foundation.
“The Hayes family lost the pillar of their family, the provider, the protector, the father, the husband, the best friend for both of them,” Brian Dennis, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told jurors during closing arguments. John Hayes is “not here today because of an accident that occurred on Jan. 17, 2023. A preventable accident. An unnecessary accident. An accident that probably doesn’t occur but for the lack of ordinary care.”
The family alleged that the three defendants were “working in concert to repave Tradesman Road” under a contract that Zumwalt had with the city of San Antonio. Zumwalt said it selected MN Trucking as a broker to haul asphalt to the construction site. MN Trucking turned to COM Transport to provide the truck and driver, the plaintiffs alleged.
Delgado-Garcia received a commercial driver’s license while in his native Mexico, but the plaintiffs alleged he was residing in Texas and, therefore, should have had a commercial driver’s license issued by the state.
Amy Hayes seethed on the witness stand Tuesday over the circumstances surrounding her husband’s death.
“It is senseless what occurred here. Senseless,” she said. “None of this should have happened.”
On the night of her husband’s death, she said she made a vow to herself that she was not going to be angry. But she admitted she’s struggled to keep that promise.
“I am really resentful that I’m starting to feel so mad,” he said. “I’m bitter. I’m mad ... Who doesn’t check their driver? I don’t get that.”
Attorney Sylvan Lang Jr., who also represented Amy and Hayden Hayes, told jurors they should assign 75% responsibility to Zumwalt because it relied on subcontractors to provide 75% of the asphalt transportation for the construction project.
“Second tier, first tier, they didn’t care,” Lang said during closing arguments. “They could only perform the contract with subs, and they didn’t vet or verify a single one.”
Dennis urged the jury to award Amy Hayes $12 million and Hayden Hayes $4 million in damages.
Floyd Hartley Jr., a Denver lawyer representing Zumwalt, said the only reason his client was brought into the case was because “our asphalt was in the back of the truck.”
“Ms. Hayes told you, none of this had to happen,” Hartley said to the jury. “I agree with that. It is really simple. Mr. Delgado was alone in that dump truck. He alone controlled the speed. ... Mr. Delgado is primarily responsible. If you look at this (jury) charge, they didn’t sue him. They’re not holding him responsible.”
Jurors weren’t asked to assign any responsibility for the accident to Delgado-Garcia.
Hartley added that COM Transport “probably deserves some responsibility because they put him in the truck.”
COM’s principal, Oscar Steven Mendoza, and MN Trucking owner Gilmer Mendoza are brothers-in-law. Yet they blamed each other.
MN Trucking “exercised exclusive use and control, not just of the truck, but the driver,” Edward Osuna, COM Transport’s lawyer, told jurors.
Gregory Peterson, attorney for MN Trucking, said Oscar Steven Mendoza testified that Delgado-Garcia was working for him.
“Delgado approached COM,” Peterson said to the jury. “Delgado was interviewed by COM, hired by them, road-tested by them, given the keys (to the truck) by them and paid by them. And none of those involved MN or Gilmer. We don’t even know how much Delgado was paid. Only COM seems to know that.”
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