Nelson V. Toyota Motor Company Et Al

Case Background

Wesley Nelson filed a lawsuit against Toyota, claiming the safety features failed to deploy during a catastrophic rollover accident due to a manufacturing defect. The accident resulted in the tragic death of Cecile Bender. The Toyota product liability lawsuit was brought before the United States District Court in Colorado, located in Denver. Judge Nina Y. Wang oversaw the case, with Magistrate Judge Kathryn A. Starnella handling referred matters. [Case number: 1:20cv3119]

Cause

Wesley Nelson, a Colorado resident, lived in Thornton at 15887 Clayton Street. On October 25, 2018, he was a front-seat passenger in a 2017 Toyota RAV4, operated by his grandfather, Dennis Bender. The vehicle, manufactured by Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) and distributed by Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. (TMS), was traveling eastbound on E. 168th Avenue when Bender lost control. The vehicle veered across lanes, went off-road, struck a utility pole, and rolled over three and a quarter times before resting on its driver’s side. The rollover ejected 72-year-old rear passenger Cecile Bender, who died from her injuries. Nelson, 19 at the time, wore his seatbelt but suffered a severe brain injury when his head struck the passenger-side glass or the ground. Despite the collision and rollover, critical safety features failed. The front airbags, side-curtain airbags, and seatbelt pre-tensioners did not deploy. The RAV4 included advanced safety systems designed to protect occupants during crashes. The vehicle featured a Supplemental Restraint System (SRS), airbags, and event data recorders (EDRs) meant to document crash details. However, the EDR did not record the pole impact or rollover event. Investigators found Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) affecting the airbag control module, which contributed to the malfunction. Toyota’s safety systems should have deployed the side-curtain air