Gravesend Man Wins $40 Million In Verizon Accident

Matthew Falcone and his family haven’t had it easy these past four years, following an accident in 2006 that left him with brain damage and partially paralyzed. But the 53-year-old Gravesend construction worker is getting some relief and better care in the wake of a Supreme Court decision awarding him $40.8 million.

The judgement found Verizon responsible for the accident, in which one of the company’s vans zoomed down Gravesend’s Stillwell Avenue at 50 mph, hitting Falcone and throwing him through the air. Falcone spent weeks in the hospital in a coma, not expected to survive. Since then, he has been moved to a Staten Island nursing home. According to his sister, the money will be used to move him in with family and pay for in-home care. “I’m just very grateful that Matty is finally going to have the kind of care he deserves,” his sister, Doreen Bergamo, told the Daily News.

According to the New York Post, Verizon’s attorneys argued that Falcone was at fault. They said Falcone stuck his head out from behind one of Stillwell Avenue’s elevated support pillars, and was hit by the vehicles side mirror. But photos from after the accident show damage to the van’s windshield and headlights. Verizon is considering an appeal.