Jury awards $22.75M to man who lost toes after falling from damaged NYC subway platform

Fox News

15 hours ago

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has reportedly been ordered to pay $22.75 million to a bike deliveryman who lost five of his toes after falling from a chipped subway platform in New York City.
A jury reached a verdict on Monday in favor of the victim, Maruf Hossain, awarding him $2.75 million more than the $20 million amount his original lawsuit sought, the New York Post reported.
In June 2017, Hossain tripped on a chipped platform at the Parkchester station in the Bronx and fell onto the subway tracks as a train pulled in — severing all five toes on his left foot. Hossain also fractured his pelvis, dislocated his hip and was left with spinal fractures and head trauma, according to the New York Post.
Hossain — who was born in Bangladesh and was 24 years old at the time of the incident — told the court he will require constant medical care throughout the remainder of his life and will also need assistance with chores. However, Hossain said the MTA tried to "bully" him into an "unfair" settlement of $100,000, he told the New York Post.
"The jury saw through their lies and gave me a second chance at living a normal life," Hossain said in a statement to the New York Post.
Hossain's lawyer Nick Liakas told Fox News Digital that the verdict is not only a win for his client, but serves as a warning to powerful corporations that "the days of dodging responsibility through legal gamesmanship are over."
"For far too long, the New York City Transit Authority has gambled with the well-being of innocent New Yorkers," Liakas said. "Their litigation strategy has been clear: delay, deny, and defend — no matter the human cost. But this time, the jury rejected those tactics and delivered a powerful message: accountability matters, and New Yorkers deserve better."
In a statement to the New York Post, Liakas said the MTA argued that Hossain tried to commit suicide and maintained that the platform where he fell from was not defected. The MTA also had a teenage witness who testified that she saw Hossain jump, but Liakas said the transportation network "likely authored the witness statement themselves and passed it off as an independent statement."
Hossain, who insisted he did not try to commit suicide, did not have any history of issues with substance abuse or any documented psychiatric history. Hossain sued the MTA for negligence six months after the incident, according to the New York Post.
The verdict issued Monday could be further challenged or appealed.
"The MTA is reviewing the verdict while assessing all legal options," MTA rep Meghan Keegan told the New York Post.
The MTA, which serves 15.3 million people, is the largest transportation network in North America. It serves areas surrounding New York City, Long Island, southeastern New York State and Connecticut, according to the MTA website.
The MTA and Landman Corsi Ballaine & Ford did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.