Gentry v. Toyota Motor Corp.

The issue in this appeal is whether the trial court erred in dismissing this action for spoliation of evidence.

On May 17, 1991, Iris Gentry was rendered paraplegic when she lost control of her 1987 Toyota pickup truck and crashed into a ravine in Eden, North Carolina. Although Iris has amnesia as to the events surrounding the accident, an eyewitness testified that the truck’s engine had been racing prior to the accident. The witness stated that, when Iris shifted gears, the engine “went wide open,” and the truck “accelerated . . . started fishtailing” and went off the road.

Iris’s attorney…