Gary Circle rocketed down a residential road in a suburban Sacramento, CA neighborhood, his Kia Optima blasting past the 40 mph speed limit. He was drunk. As Circle approached an intersection, another driver, Adam Bills, began turning left in his minivan. Bills thought he could pull out before the speeding Kia reached him. However, he underestimated how fast Circle was traveling. Bills froze, slamming on his brakes right in the Kia’s path. Speeding at 85 mph, the inebriated Circle swerved to the right, behind Bills’s minivan. Like a cannon, Circle’s Kia careened directly into the living room of a house — where Janice, Daniel, and Lori Williams were watching television.
The Kia tore through the living room, landing in the adjacent bedroom. Tragically, Janice was killed instantly. Daniel and Lori both underwent extensive surgeries to address a shattered sternum, a destroyed forearm, and multiple torn tendons. Their journeys to recovery were marked by pain, both physical and emotional.
The Williams family sought justice and compensation for their profound losses. However, the case’s intricacies demanded an attorney who could navigate the complex, intertwined liabilities of the involved parties. They approached Robert Carichoff of Triumph Law, P.C., for his experience in auto collision cases. He was determined to support the bereaved family.
Robert identified three Defendants: (1) Gary Circle, the drunk driver; (2) the City of Rancho Cordova, which hadn’t properly maintained the intersection; and (3) Adam Bills, whose panicked braking caused Williams to swerve. He needed to prove that liability should be split between the three parties. Robert had an obvious and strong case against the drunk driver. However, he faced challenges building his case against the other two offenders. Focus groups Robert conducted revealed that a jury would likely assign minimal responsibility to the city and its contractors. And Bills’s liability was difficult to explain clearly.
Robert enlisted the help of the Williams family’s treating physicians, a lifecare planner, and an accident reconstructionist. The latter helped acquire Ring camera footage to visualize the accident. Robert presented his findings to the City of Rancho Cordova and Adam Bills’s insurance carrier, but neither Defendants would budge.
With the opposition feigning innocence, the case was set for trial. Robert had the evidence to prove comparative liability. However, the expert depositions and Ring camera footage alone would not be enough to convince a jury why the other parties shared fault. Robert needed something that synthesized and connected all of the facets of his argument. Thus, he reached out to DK Global. With guidance from Robert and his experts, DK Global produced accident reconstruction and medical animations to shed light on what happened and how it impacted the Plaintiffs.
The accident reconstruction animation began by showing an overview of the street where the incident occurred. The surrounding shrubs were highlighted and measured to be seven feet high on the day of the collision. Next, the accident was showcased from Adam Bills’s point of view, emphasizing the lack of visibility. Then, the video shifted to what Gary Circle saw out of his Kia. His vehicle swerved away from the minivan, barreling into the Williams’s house. Finally, the Williams family was shown in their living room moments before the impact. The Kia exploded through the wall, tearing down the family.
The medical animation began with a 3D character model of Daniel Williams, depicting the intricate surgery on his severely torn rotator cuff. The animation zoomed in for a close-up view of the Q fix anchor as it was inserted into Daniel’s shoulder bone. A Birdbeak tool meticulously sutured the torn muscle back into place. Then, the presentation illustrated the bursectomy procedure to excise Daniel’s inflamed sacs. Finally, a similar anchoring technique restored Daniel’s rotator cuff to its proper anatomical position.
Over four intense weeks, the trial unfolded with Adam Bill and the City of Rancho Cordova firmly rejecting blame for the trauma inflicted on the Williams family. Robert presented the animation, complemented by testimonies from his experts. The jury was horrified for the Williams family upon watching the animation. They returned a verdict of $6,500,000 — Gary Circle was found 60% liable, with the remaining 40% split between the city and Adam Bill.
Robert Carichoff, the principal attorney at Triumph Law, P.C., operates out of Folsom, California. With over two decades of experience, he and his firm focus primarily on personal injury cases. He is recognized as a "Top-Rated" Lawyer by the State Bar Certified Lawyer Referral Service. In addition, Robert was nominated for "Advocate of the Year 2014" by the Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association. Robert is a member of the Multi-Million and Million Dollar Advocates Forums. The National Trial Lawyers has consistently listed him among the Top 100 Plaintiff Attorneys since 2020.
