On July 23, 2016, plaintiff Ian Dotson, 24, an autistic man, was at a supervised outing at the Orange County Fair, in Costa Mesa, when he walked away from his caretaker sometime between 9 and 9:30 p.m. Dotson has the cognitive functioning level of a child, and he suffers from behavioral problems secondary to his diagnosis, including aggression, impulsiveness and elopement. Prior to the incident, Dotson had a well-documented history of elopements from supervision at Aacres L.L.C., a 24-hour supervised adult residential facility where Dotson resided. As a result, the facility’s behavior consultant created a plan to provide caretakers with advice on how to prevent Dotson from engaging in eloping behavior and how to respond when he does. On the night of the incident, Dotson and his caretaker left the fair around 9 p.m. However, the caretaker allegedly forgot where he parked the company van and led Dotson through the parking lot while he searched for the vehicle for 30 to 40 minutes. During that time, Dotson grew increasingly agitated, began to lag behind and, at some point, walked away from his caretaker. The caretaker believed he saw Dotson walking away, but when he called out to the person, he discovered it was not Dotson. After discovering that Dotson eloped, the caretaker allegedly attempted to call various Aacres administrators to report the emergency, but he could not reach anyone to help for several hours. Just after midnight, Dotson was struck by a vehicle, which was travelling 45 mph, nearly two miles from the fairgrounds. At the time of the collision, Dotson was running against a red light on westbound MacArthur Boulevard, while the vehicle that struck him had the right of way, travelling on southbound Fairview Avenue. Dotson sustained life-threatening to his lower back, pelvis, a hip, a leg and a knee. Dotson’s parents, Arthur Dotson and Kara Dotson, acting on behalf of their son, sued the employer of Ian Dotson’s caretaker, Aacres L.L.C. Ian Dotson’s parents alleged that the caretaker was negligent in the supervision of their son and that Aacres was vicariously liable for the caretaker’s actions. The also alleged that Aacres was negligent in the training of the caretaker. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that the caretaker searched for Ian Dotson on his own for 40 to 50 minutes before notifying the Orange County Sheriff’s Department about Dotson being missing. Counsel argued that the caretaker, who was one of the newer caretakers at the facility, failed to call Aacres’ on-call administrator, was not familiar with Aacres’ procedures for on-call administrators, and/or did not have the correct information on who should be called. Counsel also argued that Aacres and its staff were negligent for sending Dotson to the fair with a caretaker who, by the caretaker’s own admissions, was not trained about, and did not understand, Dotson’s behavioral plan. Plaintiffs’ counsel further argued that the caretaker negligently supervised Dotson in the fairgrounds parking lot and negligently responded to Dotson’s elopement by delaying his report to authorities. Defense counsel contended that over the course of several years, Dotson had been placed on a number of 5150 holds for violence against his family and that Dotson continued to elope even after the new behavioral plan was created, with one of his elopements going for miles and onto Interstate 105. Counsel also contended that based on the caretaker’s background and certification as a direct support professional, the caretaker had adequate training to supervise Dotson. Defense counsel argued that pursuant to California regulations, there was nothing Aacres’ staff could do to prevent Dotson from eloping, as state law prohibited caretakers from restraining or even touching Dotson in any way, and that Dotson was free to leave at any time. Counsel also argued that Dotson, who by law was free to leave at any time, was wholly responsible for his own harm and that liability should be apportioned between Dotson and the driver involved in the accident. In addition, counsel contended that Dotson’s parents and the supervisors at Harbor Regional Center, where Dotson lived before Aacres, all testified that, with Dotson’s tendency to elope, the incident was an accident waiting to happen. According to defense counsel, there were a number of versions presented as to what happened in the parking lot as Dotson and the caretaker looked for the van and that some of the hearsay testimony supported plaintiffs’ counsel’s contention that the caretaker was not trained on a care plan. However, defense counsel noted that neither Dotson, who was incompetent, nor the caretaker, who was never deposed, testified at trial and that the caretaker’s supervisor, who had allegedly conducted the caretaker’s training on Dotson’s behavioral plan, also did not testify at trial. Defense counsel also asserted that the court failed to exclude the volume of hearsay testimony and that if it had done so, plaintiffs’ counsel would have been unable to establish their case and the case would have been subject to dismissal by way of a motion non-suit. However, defense counsel contended that, instead, the court, over objection, allowed numerous hearsay statements into evidence, which afforded plaintiffs’ counsel an opportunity to tell a story of the events in the parking lot. In addition, defense counsel claimed that the jury never heard that Dotson returned to Aacres following the subject incident and lived at Aacres up to and through the trial and that the jury never heard that Dotson continued to elope from Aacres, including literally running away, similar to how he ran away pre-incident, up to and throughout the trial., Dotson suffered multiple fractures to his pelvis, including an open-book fracture and a dislocation of the right sacroiliac joint. He also sustained to his right leg, including a comminuted and displaced tibia fracture, a femoral neck fracture and compartment syndrome. He was immediately taken Orange County Global Medical Center, in Santa Ana, where he underwent emergency surgeries that involved the placement of an external pelvic fixator, decompressive fasciotomies to relieve the compartment syndrome, and an external fixation of the right tibia. Both parties agreed that the trauma surgeon at Orange County Global Medical Center saved Dotson’s life. Two days later, Dotson underwent further surgery at Orange County Global Medical Center to convert the pelvic and right leg external fixations into internal fixations. The pelvic fixator was ultimately removed after six months, but screws remained in Dotson’s pelvis. A metal rod and multiple screws also remained in Dotson’s right lower leg. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that Dotson will require future care to treat his lower back pain, which is caused by the sacroiliac joint dislocation and the screws that remain in his pelvis. Counsel also contended that Dotson will require a traumatic reduction of joint space in his right knee, which will require future partial and total knee replacements. The parties stipulated to Dotson’s past medical expenses, which were paid pursuant to Howell. (The numbers were not disputed and was there no dispute as to whether the past medical care was reasonable.) However, due to the liability dispute, the question of awarding past medical costs was listed on the jury verdict sheet. In addition to past medical costs, Dotson sought recovery of future medical costs, and damages for his past and future pain and suffering. Defense counsel contended that Dotson had fully recovered from his and that Dotson can walk, run and live without pain. Counsel noted that Dotson last saw an orthopedic doctor in 2017 and that Dotson is not undergoing any physical therapy. Counsel also noted that Dotson has not required any pain medication for over two years. As a result, defense counsel argued that, based in part on the testimony of those who know Dotson best, his current caregivers at Aacres, there is no need for future procedures.