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Ford, Bridgestone/Firestone settle rollover lawsuit

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (CNN) -- Ford Motor Co. and Bridgestone/Firestone Tires have reached a settlement in a paralyzed woman's lawsuit, just one day before jury selection was scheduled to begin.

Donna Bailey, 44, was a passenger in a Ford Explorer when a Firestone tire shredded and the vehicle rolled over. The Portland, Texas, woman suffered a spinal cord injury in the March 10 accident that left her paralyzed from the neck down.

Her attorney, Tab Turner, said he had "worked all night" with attorneys from the two companies to reach the settlement. Turner would not disclose the terms but said, "Ford buckled." The lawsuit sought up to $90 million in damages.

VIDEO CNN coverage of the settlement, including a meeting between lawyers and Bailey Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

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A Ford representative flew to Houston, Texas, to meet with Bailey at a clinic Sunday night. Turner said the official apologized "for any role they may have played in her accident." He said Bridgestone/Firestone's president also agreed to send Bailey a written apology.

Both companies have denied negligence in the crash.

The case had been scheduled for jury selection Tuesday.

Bailey's lawsuit would have been the first involving the highly publicized allegations against Ford Explorers and Firestone to proceed to trial since a recall of 6.5 million tires in August.

The tire recall followed a string of rollover accidents, more than 200 of them fatal, in the United States and several other countries.

As many as 200 lawsuits have been filed against Ford and Firestone over tire-related crashes. Last month, Ford resolved six claims in a single day, and Bruce Kaster, a leading lawyer in defective tire suits, said the company appeared to be moving quickly to resolve the cases.

Bailey, who was a rock climber and weightlifter before her injuries landed her in the rehabilitation center, had said recently that a trial was needed because she wanted "everything to come out."

Court officials had summoned 100 Nueces County residents to be prospective jurors in the trial. Bailey's attorneys had contended that defectively manufactured tires and bad vehicle design were to blame for the wreck.

CNN Correspondent Susan Candiotti and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Bridgestone/Firestone
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Consumers Union

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