Robert M.N. Palmer and William Petrus, the Law Offices of Robert M.N. Palmer, P.C. for Plaintiffs. John Murphy, Shook, Hardy & Bacon, L.L.P. for Defendant.

During the early morning hours of June 15, 1996, David and Betty Jo Daniel were riding in the front seat of their 1995 Ford Escort. Their son, who was two at the time, was riding in a child restraint seat in the back seat. After driving for several hours on I-44, Mr Daniel apparently fell asleep, lost control of his vehicle and ran into an embankment near Rt. D in Phelps County, Missouri. Both Mr. and Mrs. Daniel were wearing the automatic two-point shoulder restraint and the manual lap belts provided in the Ford Escort, however, Mrs. Daniel had reclined the back of her seat so that she could sleep during the trip. During the collision, Mrs. Daniel submarined beneath the lap and shoulder belt and suffered massive internal injuries, dying approximately five weeks later at the University of Missouri Columbia Medical Center without ever fully regaining consciousness. Both Mr. Daniel and his son were unhurt in the accident.
 

Plaintiffs brought suit against Ford Motor Company on the basis that when the back of a seat is reclined and the occupant is wearing a restraint system, the occupant is placed in an extremely dangerous situation, and that therefore a reclining seat back is defective. In addition, Plaintiffs claimed Defendant failed to adequately warn the vehicle occupants of the danger of riding in a moving vehicle with the seat reclined.
 

Betty Jo Daniel was 26 years old at the time of her death. There were $346,000 in medical expenses.
 

The case settled for a confidential amount on February 9, 1998.