A Henrico County jury awarded $373,922 to the plaintiff in Stuart v. Presley on January 21, 2026, after a sideswipe collision that the defense described as minor and that caused minimal visible property damage. The Virginia car accident verdict came after the insurance carrier, Safeco, offered just $20,000 to settle the case, making the jury's award nearly 19 times the pre-trial offer.
The case was tried before Judge Rondelle D. Herman in Henrico County Circuit Court. Plaintiff attorneys Sharif Gray, Gray Broughton, and Zachary Grubaugh of Gray Broughton Injury Law in Richmond represented the injured party.
How the Sideswipe Collision Led to Surgery
The plaintiff was involved in a sideswipe collision in Henrico County that produced minimal property damage. Despite the low-impact appearance of the crash, the plaintiff sustained a torn rotator cuff that required surgical intervention.
The defense admitted liability just hours before trial, shifting the entire dispute to damages. The central question for the jury became whether the collision actually caused the plaintiff's shoulder injury or whether the condition existed before the crash.
The Defense Strategy: Pre-Existing Injury and Treatment Gap
The defense built its case around two arguments. First, a defense orthopedic expert testified that the plaintiff's torn rotator cuff was pre-existing. The expert pointed to the fact that the plaintiff had undergone rotator cuff surgery on his other shoulder just over a year before the collision.
Second, the defense highlighted a nine-month gap in treatment between the collision and when the plaintiff sought care for the injury at issue. The defense argued this gap undermined the claim that the crash caused the rotator cuff tear.
These are common defense tactics in low-property-damage cases. Insurance carriers frequently rely on prior medical history and treatment gaps to minimize the value of a claim or deny causation altogether.
Why the Jury Rejected a $20,000 Offer and Returned $373,922
Safeco's highest settlement offer before trial was $20,000. The case proceeded to a one-day jury trial, and the jury returned a verdict of $373,922 for the plaintiff.
The gap between the carrier's offer and the jury's award is striking. It suggests that the jury found the plaintiff's testimony and evidence about the injury more credible than the defense's pre-existing condition argument. It also reflects what plaintiff attorneys across the country see regularly: carriers undervaluing claims involving low property damage, only to face significantly larger verdicts at trial.
What This Virginia Car Accident Verdict Signals for Plaintiff Attorneys
The Stuart v. Presley result is a useful data point for attorneys handling cases where the defense leans on minimal property damage to suppress settlement value. Several aspects of this case stand out for practitioners.
The defense conceded liability on the eve of trial, a move that can sometimes work in the defense's favor by focusing the jury solely on damages. Here, that strategy did not pay off. The jury awarded nearly 19 times what Safeco had offered.
The nine-month treatment gap and prior shoulder surgery on the opposite side gave the defense real ammunition, yet the jury still returned a six-figure verdict. This outcome suggests that when the surgical evidence supports causation, juries can see past treatment gaps and prior injury history.
For plaintiff attorneys who handle disputed-causation cases, this verdict from Henrico County Circuit Court sends a clear message. Taking a case to trial can produce results that far exceed what the carrier puts on the table. Browse the latest verdict news on Major Verdict to track outcomes like this one.
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