Judge Clears Porsche In First Paul Walker Wrongful Death Suit

As many Rennlisters have been saying for a while now (including us), it’s hard to see how Porsche could be blamed for the 2013 crash that killed “The Fast and the Furious” star Paul Walker and his fellow enthusiast and business partner, Roger Rodas. Especially since an official investigation found that the modified 2005 Porsche Carrera GT was being driven at unsafe speeds by Rodas before it crashed and caught fire. Now the courts officially agree, as the first of three wrongful death suits against Porsche has been dismissed.

The suit, filed by Rodas’s widow, Kristine Rodas, was thrown out by U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez on Monday. He “found that Rodas had not presented sufficient evidence to prove that alleged design flaws with the Carrera GT caused her husband’s death,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

In particular, Rodas’s suit claimed that Porsche was at fault because the GT lacked a crash cage and a racing fuel cell; Gutierrez didn’t believe either safety feature would have saved the duo. The suit also argued that the suspension was at fault, but Gutierrez disqualified Rodas’s expert witness on the matter.

While this is no doubt welcome news for Porsche, they’re going to have to keep fighting. Two separate wrongful death lawsuits are still pending, one brought forth by Walker’s daughter, and the other by his father. Those suits are likely to be unaffected by Gutierrez’s decision this week, since they both allege different mechanical faults.

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Via [Los Angeles Times]