Lawsuits Claim Tire Defect
By Robert Arnold, KPRC Local 2 Houston
POSTED: Wednesday, June 16, 2010

HOUSTON -- Local 2 investigates claims against one of the most popular tires in the country. We all depend on our tires to be safe and reliable, but Local 2 is learning about accusations against Cooper Tires, the second largest tire manufacturer in the country.

"The only thing I remember is them breaking the window or something like that to get me out," said 13-year-old Jesus Rodriguez. "Then when they got me out of the car, I, like, fell asleep."

Rodriguez lives with the consequences of an accident he doesn't remember. In August 2007, the SUV Rodriguez was riding in was hit by another car. Rodriguez was left permanently paralyzed from the waist down. He now needs help getting in and out of bed, dressing himself and going to the bathroom.

"I used to play outside a lot," said Rodriguez. "Like playing soccer with my cousin, play tag."

Speaking through an interpreter, Rodriguez' mother, Elena, said her son now spends all his time inside, rarely talking about his paralysis.

"He's not the type of kid to speak out his feelings, but some nights when I put him to bed he starts to cry," Elena Rodriguez said through a translator.

A lawsuit filed in Harris County court reads the tire on the car that hit Rodriguez suffered a "catastrophic tread separation."

"I certainly think the cause of the accident was the tire and the failure of the tire," said attorney Wes Ball.

Ball and his law partner, Kyle Farrar, said what happened to Jesus Rodriguez was not an accident. The tire on the car that hit Rodriguez was a Cooper tire.

"Cooper had a problem, and Cooper knew they had a problem a long time ago," said Farrar.

However, Cooper officials pointed out an accident report filed by the Harris County Sheriff's Office determined the driver of the other car, Dustin Langstaff, was driving 98 mph on a two-lane highway in a car with 8-year-old worn tires that had been previously damaged.

Langstaff died in the accident. A deposition taken in the Rodriguez case from Dr. Ashraf Mozayani revealed cocaine in Langstaff's system at the time of the accident.

Still, Ball and Farrar claim Cooper tires have a design defect. The pair claim Cooper uses a faulty "skim stock." This is a chemical package that helps tire components properly bond together and prevents premature aging and cracking.

"Not every tire is going to fail that Cooper makes, but a much higher percentage of them than anybody else is going to fail," said Farrar.

Ball and Farrar also point to what they claim is an almost identical case in Iowa.

Ivon Toe was one of several people in a car that flipped over. The mother of two is now a quadriplegic who needs constant care. Ball and Farrar argued the Cooper tire on Toe's van also suffered a tread separation. The tires in the Rodriguez and Toe cases are different models.

"Cooper's own documentation shows even back in the mid-90s, they discovered this real problem they were having with tread separation," said Farrar. "The jury (in the Toe case) got a chance to see those documents, hear Cooper's own employees testify about what they wrote and what they were doing at that time and the result is a $33 million verdict."

Even though Farrar said a jury saw those documents, Local 2 Investigates can't tell you what's in those documents. Farrar and Ball can't talk about the contents of the documents. Cooper attorneys have asked the judge in the Toe case to have the documents sealed, claiming the documents do not prove there is a problem with the company's tires, but releasing them to the public would expose valuable trade secrets.

"When the company hides the information that proves they did it, it makes it even worse," said Ball.

Even though those documents are currently under seal with the court in Iowa, the judge in the Toe case made statements on the record following the verdict.

According to a trial transcript, Judge Carla T. Schemmel said, "I see evidence that Cooper knew as early as 1996 that they had a problem with their skim stock." Schemmel added, "And they knew all along that they needed to and knew a good year before -- or at least eight or nine months before this accident happened they had the solution to the problem and they put it off because of costs."

"We're going to do everything we can to make sure those documents are released," said Ball.

There is a hearing next month in Iowa to determine whether those documents will be released to the public.

Cooper attorneys are appealing the Iowa verdict, arguing a nail in the tire caused the blowout and an inexperienced driver caused the rollover crash. Cooper officials add their tires exceed all government safety standards.

The Rodriguez case was settled under a confidential agreement.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's database, 569,982 Cooper tires have been recalled in the past 10 years. All of those recalls were initiated by Cooper itself and not the federal government. Neither of the tires in the Toe and Rodriguez case were part of those recalls.

Officials with NHTSA told Local 2 there are no plans to investigate Cooper tires.