Jury Finds Companies Responsible for Defects in Protective Vest

By Amy Teeple

Published on September 07, 2006

Officer Tony Zeppetella was wearing a Second Chance Body Armor protective vest when he was fatally shot in Oceanside, California, during a traffic stop in June 2003. His vest stopped 12 bullets, but another bullet entered his chest.

Named in the lawsuit were the now-bankrupt Second Chance Body Armor Inc., which manufactured and marketed the protective vest, and Toyobo Co. Ltd., a Japanese company that supplied the vest’s Zylon synthetic fibers, which were designed to stop the bullets.

Gregory Emerson, the lawyer representing Zeppetella’s widow and son, stated during the trial that both companies were aware that exposure to heat, humidity, and light could compromise the vest’s effectiveness, but did not warn consumers. As a police officer in Southern California, Zeppetella and his vest were constantly exposed to those factors.

The San Diego County Superior Court jury awarded Zeppetella’s family $3.6 million in damages, but held the two companies responsible for only $2.5 million. The jury found Adrian Camacho, who shot Zeppetella but was not named in the lawsuit, responsible for the remainder of the damages. Camacho is currently on death row at San Quentin State Prison for the death of the officer.

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