An Uber driver’s decision to strand two intoxicated passengers on the shoulder of State Route 73 near the MacArthur Boulevard exit in Newport Beach, California, ended in the death of 23-year-old Emily Normandin-Parker, who entered the freeway on foot and was struck and killed by a passing vehicle. Her friend and fellow passenger, Luna Moore, survived the ordeal. An arbitrator has now ordered Uber and driver Vu Tran to pay $40 million combined to Normandin-Parker’s parents and to Moore, finding the company and driver jointly and severally liable for her death. The ruling found the location where Tran left the women — a freeway gore point, the triangular area beside an off-ramp — was “unsafe and illegal,” and that Tran could have safely exited at MacArthur Boulevard instead.
According to ABC7 Los Angeles, retired Judge Richard A. Stone, who presided over the five-day arbitration, rejected Uber’s argument that it is merely a technology company and instead found the ride-hailing giant liable as a common carrier responsible for passenger safety. The outlet reported that Tran had argued with Moore over a cleaning fee before ordering the women out of the vehicle, and that GPS data showed he drove past the area where Normandin-Parker’s body was later found before contacting Uber about the fee. Normandin-Parker’s parents, Carol Normandin and Ken Parker, were each awarded $20 million, while Moore received $300,000; the family has said proceeds will go to a foundation created in Emily’s name to push for ride-hailing safety reforms.
