A Levy County jury handed down a verdict of more than $301 million on November 2, 2026, for a woman who was nearly killed when a drunk driver going the wrong way at 60 mph with no headlights slammed into her car head-on. The woman had been driving home after shopping at a Walmart in Chiefland when the crash happened, leaving her with lacerated organs, internal bleeding and several broken bones.
The jury reached its decision after a two-day trial, according to the Gainesville Sun, awarding the woman a total of $301,145,960.72. A press release detailing the case, published by einpresswire.com, states the verdict included $200,000,000 for pain and suffering and $100,000,000 in punitive damages, stemming from Levy County Case No. CA-000285.
The driver who hit her was found to have a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit at the hospital, per the same release. He was driving in the wrong lane, at night, with his headlights off, when he struck her car head-on at roughly 60 mph.
Airlifted and Resuscitated Multiple Times
The woman was airlifted to UF Health in critical condition, where medical staff resuscitated her several times, the release notes. She underwent a dozen surgeries during her first few days in the intensive care unit while still unconscious, according to her attorney, and she nearly died from sepsis in the aftermath of the crash.
Attorney Kyle Bagen called the woman's survival remarkable, crediting her medical team and her own determination in pulling through. Bagen also said he expects the size of the verdict could prompt an appeal, but added that he remains confident justice was served with this result, telling the outlet, “We expect with such a large verdict there may be an appeal, but we're confident justice was served with this result.”
How the Award Compares to Other Florida Verdicts
The $301 million figure lands among a string of enormous jury awards handed down in Florida this year. An Orange County jury awarded $644,751,855.08 against the owners and operators of Park Social in Winter Park after a patron was catastrophically injured in a staircase fall, according to expertinstitute.com. A Broward County jury separately awarded $603 million to the estate and family of a 22-year-old mother of two who was killed after a counterfeit airbag allegedly exploded during a minor crash, the same report states.
Nine-figure verdicts in drunk-driving cases aren't limited to Florida, either. A Franklin County, North Carolina, jury awarded $40 million in a 2020 drunk-driving case tied to a fatal wreck, and the North Carolina Court of Appeals later upheld that verdict after rejecting the defendants' appeal, according to wral.com.
What Happens Next
Florida law places limits on punitive damages in most civil cases, generally capping them at the greater of three times compensatory damages or $500,000, according to Florida Statute 768.73. The statute also outlines circumstances allowing a higher cap of four times compensatory damages or $2 million, as well as a narrow exception with no cap at all when a jury makes specific findings about intent to harm and actual harm. It is not established which of these provisions, if any, applies to this verdict, and whether an appeal will ultimately be filed remains unknown.
