Haehyun Choi, Paralyzed From Accident, Fights Toyota

Posted Fevereiro 15th, 2010 by

in

Source:

Boston Korea

Writer:

Myong Sool Chang

Haehyun Choi and her husband, mechanical engineer Hyung-Chul Choi, bought an identical car after her accident to investigate its cause. They say a car part that keeps the wheel in correct position, a strut rod, was defective. (photo: ChoiFive.net)

The following edited commentary is from the print edition of Boston Korea.

Thirteen years ago while driving her Toyota Corolla, Haehyun Choi was in an accident that left her paralyzed. The cause of the accident was questionable, and she has been in a fight with the goliath corporation ever since. When she heard news of the recent Toyota recall, she felt it had gone too far.

Mrs. Choi filed for an appeal with the Massachusetts State Court of Appeals, but she has yet to receive one. She sees the current recall at Toyota, now being accused of a cover-up, as overlapping with her situation.

When her accident occurred in 1997, as with the current recall, Toyota’s first response was to claim “driver error” rather than admit to a malfunction.

In a recent interview with ABC News, Toyota America COO James Lentz responded to questioning about a cover up, blunting saying: “There is no cover-up.” He also said he is “confident that there are no electronic problems.”

Toyota has attributed floor mats and gas pedals in the sudden accelerations that spawned the car recalls.

However, the US House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce Committee chairman, Henry Waxman, said: "I want to know what caused the problem, and I don't just want a statement because their statements seem to be at variance from what they've said publicly and what they've said privately." Rep. Waxman is demanding that Toyota come clean.

Mrs. Choi wrote on her Web site (choifive.net) this month: “[O]n ABC News I saw a report on an accident in LA last year. The president of Toyota appeared in the report, politely explaining the family’s tragedy as the result of driver’s fault. When I saw him lying so calmly and politely, my blood rose.”

Regarding Toyota’s assertion of driver error, Mrs. Choi says “the words ‘Driver fault’ shows that Toyota is the same as they were 13 years ago.”

Having mobilized lawyers and specialists, Toyota was able to win the case brought on by Mrs. Choi by convincing jurors that her accident was the result of driver error.

Regarding “runaway cars,” in which the car suddenly begins to accelerate, ABC News interviewed a driver whose car started to go faster even though he had not stepped on the gas pedal. The driver’s wife and two children were passengers in the car, which continued to accelerate despite the driver’s stepping on the brake. Only after stepping on the brake and using the emergency brake at the same time was he able to stop the car.

The problem is to determine how long Toyota has known of this and similar defects. The American media is now focused on raising this question. Also, by opening a special hearing, it looks as though there will be some intense interrogation on the matter.

In 1997, while traveling on interstate 90 in eastern Massachusetts, Haehyun Choi inexplicably lost control of her Toyota Corolla, sending her flipping off the highway and striking a sign post.

The accident left Haehyun Choi paralyzed, and she and her family have suffered unspeakable pain since then – especially in 2005, when they lost their case against Toyota.

Today they are still waiting for an appeal.

Myong Sool Chang is the president of Boston Korea newspaper. This commentary appeared in the print edition of Boston Korea.

Source: Boston Korea

Copyright 2010 New England Ethnic Newswire, EthnicNEWz.org. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast or distributed without the permission of the source. E-mail inquiries and press releases to NEWz at EthnicNews (@) yahoo (.) com.

Go to choifive.net to read Haehyun Choi’s account of the car accident, her rejection of a $1 million settlement that she said Toyota offered her, and her accusation of pre-trial evidence tampering.

Click on the links below to read Mrs. Choi’s blog about being a mom, wife and paralyzed:

Getting hospitalized for second-degree burns that she is unable to feel

Young son Kevin’s guilt for “causing" his mom’s burns and the police’s interrogation of his dad

Losing the will to live after developing pneumonia again

VIDEO: Korea TV media’s “In Depth – 60 Minutes” visits the Choi family (with English subtitles)

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