UPDATE: Plaintiff in GM Ignition Switch Lawsuits Drops Case, Faces Perjury Charge
Robert Scheuer, who sued General Motors Co. for injuries he blamed on a failed ignition switch, has dropped his claim and now faces charges of lying in court.
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Robert Scheuer, who sued General Motors Co. for injuries he blamed on a failed ignition switch, has dropped his claim and now faces charges of lying in court.
The dismissal ends what other victims of GM’s defective ignition switches had hoped would be a bellwether case.
Scheuer claimed he suffered neck and back injuries and loss of memory as a result of a 2014 crash involving his Saturn Ion sedan. He blamed the ignition switch for turning off the car’s engine just before the crash.
GM says the crash was at very low speed on an icy bridge that produced at least 38 similar accidents on the same evening. The company argued that Scheuer’s neck and back problems predated the crash. GM also uncovered evidence that he and his wife lied to the jury about why they were evicted from a home they bought shortly after the accident.
The Scheuers blamed the consequences of the crash. But GM found evidence to the contrary, including a check stub Scheuer doctored to help finalize the home purchase. The Scheuers have each hired criminal defense attorneys to handle expected perjury and fraud charges against them.
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