Bloomberg news reports the US attorney’s office in the southern district of New York is investigating possible criminal charges against GM. As a product liability lawyer, I would be surprised if there is a criminal conviction. Very often when a corporation is caught covering up matter that lead to death of consumers a fine is paid with no admission of liability and no individual being held accountable.
In the GM case, supposedly GM knew since 2004 that the ignition switches in some models could move out of the “run” position to “accessory” causing loss of power to the motor, and electrical system, including power steering and airbags. The loss of power caused crashes where a number of people died, and others were injured. In these types of cases, many, many incidents go unreported as the cause is unrecognized . At least the national news has picked up the story, which should bring attention to defects which cause repeated losses to members of the public and their families, but often go unrecognized until an investigation. Bloomberg notes that congressional committees and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “are also probing GM’s actions leading to the recall.”
