STORAGE NAME: h6019.CJS
DATE: 3/17/2023
(March 16, 2023)
SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT
The Honorable Paul Renner
Speaker, The Florida House of Representatives
Suite 420, The Capitol
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1300
Re: HB 6019 - Representative Buchanan
Relief/Kristin A. Stewart/Sarasota County
THIS IS A SETTLED CLAIM FOR $5.75 MILLION AGAINST
SARASOTA COUNTY FOR INJURIES AND DAMAGES
SUFFERED BY KRISTIN A. STEWART WHEN SHE WAS
STRUCK BY A SARASOTA COUNTY UTIL ITY TRUCK ON
MAY 13, 2020.
FINDINGS OF FACT: Accident
On the afternoon of May 13, 2020, 33-year-old Kristin A.
Stewart (“Stewart”) was out on what she thought would be a
routine run, heading westbound along Bahia Vista Drive in her
hometown of Sarasota, Florida. An avid runner, Stewart
routinely ran eight to ten miles at her workday’s end, and she
had planned to do so again on this bright, clear day. At the
same time, a Sarasota County Ford F-550 utility truck operated
by Tsuguo Kanayama, a Sarasota County employee,
1
was
traveling eastbound on Bahia Vista Drive and approaching the
Witmarsum Boulevard intersection (“the intersection”).
Shortly after 1:00 p.m., Kanayama, who was initially following a
route that would have taken him straight through the
intersection and on to a Sarasota County workshop, suddenly
remembered that he had left a flashlight at his last job site and
decided to turn around to retrieve it. Kanayama later testified in
a deposition that, knowing that the truck could not properly
1
At the time of the accident, Sarasota County employed Kanayama as a Skilled Trade Worker. His duties involved water
and sewer valve maintenance. SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 2
execute a U-turn due to its turning radius, he initially intended
to make a left turn onto Witmarsum Boulevard but found it was
closed due to construction; Kanayama then decided to execute
the U-turn.
At the same time, Stewart attempted to cross Witmarsum
Boulevard by entering its marked pedestrian crosswalk. At all
times relevant to this inquiry, Stewart remained in the marked
crosswalk and had the right of way. However, Kanayama, who
testified that he did not observe Stewart, continued to execute
the U-turn, swinging the truck wide into the pedestrian
crosswalk, striking Stewart with the truck’s front right corner,
and pulling her under the truck. Kanayama also testified that,
unaware that he had struck Stewart, he continued to drive the
truck for an additional sixty to sixty-five feet, dragging Stewart
all the way. In fact, it wasn’t until Kanyama heard Stewart
screaming that he stopped the truck, coming to rest partially on
the sidewalk along which he had apparently been driving.
Upon exiting the truck, Kanayama allegedly saw Stewart for the
first time, pinned under the truck’s front right wheel. Stewart,
who had remained conscious throughout the ordeal, testified in
her deposition that she had to ask Kanayama to back the truck
up so that the wheel was no longer resting on her body.
Kanayama then moved the truck as requested and called 911,
informing the operator that he had hit a female pedestrian who
was injured and needed help.
Emergency services and law enforcement quickly responded to
the scene. Law enforcement officers began documenting the
crash, investigating what they thought at the time would be a
traffic homicide; this investigation included photographing a
debris field showing how far the truck dragged Stewart from the
point of impact, scattering her personal effects, blood, and
tissue along the way. It also included photographing the truck’s
front right wheel, in which Stewart’s blood and tissue was
embedded, and her shredded clothing. As a result of the
investigation, Kanayama was cited for careless driving, a
violation of s. 316.1925(1), F.S.
Physical Injuries
Stewart presented to the Emergency Room as a Trauma 1
Patient, meaning she was in critical condition and her chances
of survival were unknown. The medical team found that Stewart
was in acute respiratory failure, having suffered a right-lung
pneumothorax, and in hemorrhagic shock due to a lack of
oxygen resulting from blood loss. To stabilize her, the medical
team placed Stewart into a medically-induced coma. They then
intubated her, placing her on mechanical ventilation, and
obtained CT scans to assess for internal injuries.
Once stabilized, trauma surgeons performed an exploratory SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 3
laparotomy to determine the extent of her injuries, discovering
or confirming:
A grade IV liver laceration;
A bruised hepatic flexure;
A right kidney laceration and contusion;
Internal bleeding;
A right shoulder abrasion;
Bilateral elbow wounds with exposed fascia;
Traumatic hair loss due to a scalp injury;
Bilateral central abdominal avulsions with exposed
fascia and muscle;
Significant left torso road rash;
Bilateral hand lacerations and abrasions;
A buttock abrasion;
Bilateral lower quadrant defects with exposed fascia
and the right defect open to her anterior superior iliac
spine;
A lateral compression Grade III open book pelvic
fracture;
Displaced fractures of her right lower ribs; and
Bilateral transverse process fractures.
During the laparotomy, the trauma surgeons also embolized
her right hepatic artery to stem its bleeding, placed a
thoracostomy tube in her right chest due to the collapsed lung,
and irrigated and debrided Stewart’s abdomen, leaving it open
but covered with a wound vacuum in the knowledge that she
would need further surgeries. Stewart subsequently had:
Her liver surgically repaired with chromic sutures;
Her pelvis fractures surgically repaired with the
placement of two cannulated screws into the bones;
Skin grafts placed on her abdomen, right and left
elbows, right groin, and right and left hips; and
Multiple debridements and skin graft revisions.
Stewart ultimately spent fifteen days in the hospital, received
months of home health care, and underwent additional
procedures related to injuries stemming from the accident.
According to the record, costs for Stewart’s past medical care
amounted to $917,251.49.
Further, a Continuation of Care Plan completed by Dr. Craig
Lichtblau (“Lichtblau”), a Pain Management and Rehabilitation
Specialist and Physiatrist, estimates that Stewart’s future care
needs, when reduced to present value, amount to $388,538.
Loss of Wages, Future Earnings, and Benefits
Before the accident, Stewart taught at Bayshore Elementary
School, where, according to her testimony in the Special
Master Hearing held in this matter, she was a popular teacher
often requested for younger siblings by the parents of children SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 4
she had previously taught. She loved her profession and had
planned to dedicate the rest of her working life to it. Such was
her devotion that Stewart attempted to return to teaching a few
months after the accident, conducting class virtually from home
due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, the
demands of working while seeing numerous medical providers,
receiving physical therapy, and coping with chronic pain proved
to be too much, and Stewart had to resign.
Stewart subsequently underwent a disability evaluation,
conducted by Lichtblau, who found that Stewart has a partial
permanent disability and will not be able to maintain gainful
employment in the competitive open labor market or in a
sheltered environment with a benevolent employer due to her
acute, intermittent chronic pain. According to the record,
Stewart’s lost wages and future earning capacity, when
reduced to present value, is $1,927,484.
Further, in losing her employment, Stewart also lost her health
insurance benefits. According to the record, Stewart will have to
pay $156,568 over the course of her life to maintain future
health insurance coverage.
Non-Economic Damages
Before the accident, Stewart led an active lifestyle that included
the aforementioned runs, award-winning competitive skiing,
swimming, boating, hiking, and many other activities. She
shared these activities with her then-fiancé, whom she had
known since 2012 and to whom she had become engaged only
three months before the accident. Stewart and her fiancé have
since married and welcomed a daughter, but, due to pain and
physical limitations resulting from the accident, Stewart is now
unable to participate in many of the activities she and her now-
husband once enjoyed together.
2
Stewart also lives with post-traumatic stress disorder, causing
flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, nightmares, and at times the
avoidance of certain activities or places that might trigger
memories of the accident. She testified that she also suffers
from anxiety, particularly relating to the safety of her daughter
and husband as she worries about what might happen to them.
Litigation History
In late 2020, Stewart filed a lawsuit against Sarasota County,
amending her complaint on December 16, 2020. On June 20,
2022, Stewart and Sarasota County entered into a settlement
agreement for $5.95 million in which the County agreed to pay
the $200,000 sovereign immunity limits and support a claim bill
2
Stewart’s orthopedic surgeon testified in a deposition that, although the anatomy of Stewart’s pelvis was restored and he
did not impose restrictions on her activities, her biggest limiting factor is pain, which can be unpredictable due to the
severity of her injury. He also noted that the screws in her pelvis would limit her range of motion, making running difficult. SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 5
for the balance. In the settlement agreement, the County
admitted that Kanayama was solely at fault for running over
Stewart; that Kanayama was acting within the course and
scope of his employment at the time of the accident; that
Stewart was not negligent and did not contribute to causing the
accident; and that Sarasota County’s negligence, by and
through Kanayama, was the sole cause of Stewart’s injuries.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW: Pursuant to House Rule 5.6(b), stipulations entered into by the
parties to a claim bill (including settlement agreements) are not
binding on the Special Master or the House or any of its
committees of reference. Thus, each claim is heard de novo,
and the Special Master must make findings of fact and
conclusions of law which support the claim. In the instant
matter, the Claimant raises a negligence claim, the elements of
which are duty, breach, causation, and damages.
Duty
The driver of a motor vehicle has a duty to take reasonable
care and to follow all applicable laws to prevent harm to those
within the vehicle’s path.
Section 316.1925(1) F.S., provides that any person operating a
vehicle on the streets or highways within the state shall drive
the same in a careful and prudent manner, having regard for
the width, grade, curves, corners, traffic, and all other attendant
circumstances, so as not to endanger the life, limb, or property
of any person. Failure to drive in such manner shall constitute
careless driving, and person who commits such a violation
commits a moving violation.
3
Breach
The evidence presented demonstrates that Kanayama
breached the duties described above when he failed to execute
a U-turn in a careful and prudent manner, failing to have due
regard for the truck’s turning radius and the presence of a
pedestrian, thereby crossing into a pedestrian crosswalk and
causing the truck he was driving to collide with and drag
Stewart.
Causation
Stewart’s injuries were the direct and proximate result of
Kanayama’s breach of the duties described above. But for
Kanayama’s failure to execute a U-turn in a careful and prudent
manner, and to have due regard for the truck’s turning radius
and the presence of a pedestrian, the traffic crash which
caused Stewart’s injuries on May 13, 2020, would not have
occurred.
3
S. 316.1925(2), F.S. SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 6
Damages
The Claimant settled the instant matter with Sarasota County
for $5.95 million, $200,000 of which the County has already
paid as part of the settlement agreement; thus, this claim bill is
for $5.75 million to compensate the Claimant for her severe
and permanent physical injuries; past and future medical
expenses; lost wages and future earning capacity; lost benefits;
mental pain and anguish; disability; pain and suffering; and loss
of ability to enjoy life due to Kanayama’s negligence. I find the
settlement amount is reasonable based on the evidence
presented, case law, and comparable jury awards.
Respondeat Superior
Under the common law respondeat superior doctrine, an
employer is liable for the negligence of its employee when the:
Individual was an employee when the negligence
occurred;
Employee was acting within the scope of his or her
employment; and
Employee’s activities were of a benefit to the employer.
4
For conduct to be considered within the course and scope of
the employee’s employment, such conduct must have:
Been of the kind for which the employee was employed
to perform;
Occurred within the time and space limits of his
employment; and
Been due at least in part to a purpose serving the
employment.
5
Because Kanayama was at all times relevant to the instant
matter employed by Sarasota County and was acting within the
scope of his employment, which employment benefitted the
County, the County is liable for Kanayama’s negligence under
the common law respondeat superior doctrine.
CLAIMANT’S POSITION:
RESPONDENT’S POSITION:
RESPONDENT’S ABILITY TO
PAY:
ATTORNEY’S/
LOBBYING FEES:
The Claimant asserts that she is entitled to the remaining $5.75
million authorized by the settlement agreement.
Consistent with the terms of the settlement agreement in this
matter, Sarasota County supports the claim bill.
Sarasota County indicated that it maintains a self-insurance
program and an excess liability insurance policy. The County
also indicated that, should the claim bill pass, paying the claim
bill will not impact the County’s operations.
If the claim bill passes, attorney fees relating to the claim bill
4
Iglesia Cristiana La Casa Del Senor, Inc. v. L.M., 783 So. 2d 353 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001).
5
Spencer v. Assurance Co. of Am., 39 F.3d 1146 (11th Cir. 1994). SPECIAL MASTER’S FINAL REPORT--
Page 7
may not exceed $1.25 million, while lobbying fees relating to
the claim bill may not exceed $287,500.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: The claim bill is presented to the Legislature for the first time.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Based on the foregoing, I recommend that House Bill 6019 be
reported FAVORABLY.
Respectfully submitted,
CAITLIN R. MAWN,
House Special Master
cc: Representative Buchanan, House Sponsor
Senator Gruters, Senate Sponsor
Tyler Tuszynski, Senate Special Master