A California jury has awarded $33 million to twin girls whose parents were killed in a 2022 Redwood City street-racing crash, finding the teenage driver, another racer and the teen’s parents liable for the deaths.
The San Mateo County jury returned the verdict Aug. 11 after a roughly three-week wrongful death trial. Gregory Ammen, 44, and Grace Spiridon, 42, were killed on Nov. 4, 2022, when their Chevrolet was struck while turning left on El Camino Real. Their twin daughters, who were 7 at the time, survived the crash and are now 11.
Jurors found that Cesar Morales, who was 17 at the time, was street racing when he struck the family’s vehicle. They assigned Morales 60% of the fault, his father Arnold Morales 20%, his mother Susana Salto Alvarez 5%, and the other racer, Kyle Harrison, 15%.
The verdict followed testimony that Morales was traveling between 105 and 110 mph on the night of the crash. Jurors also heard that he had previously received a citation for driving more than 100 mph. His parents testified that they did not know about the earlier speeding citation.
Jurors also found Morales’ parents negligent, assigning 20% of the fault to his father and 5% to his mother. The finding was based on evidence about what they knew of their son’s driving before the crash, including the prior speeding citation.
California law does not make parents automatically liable for crashes caused by their children. Liability can instead be based on a parent’s own conduct, including whether known driving risks were ignored or a dangerous driver continued to have access to a vehicle.
Harrison was also found liable even though his vehicle did not strike the family’s car. Jurors found that his participation in the street race contributed to the crash and assigned him 15% of the fault.
California law allows responsibility to be divided among people whose conduct contributed to a collision, even when only one vehicle made the fatal impact.
The girls survived the crash and were later adopted by their aunt and uncle. The jury awarded them $33 million in economic and non-economic damages for the deaths of both parents.
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