Reporter: Mitch Himaka

A Tijuana beautician, who was rendered a paraplegic when a motorcycle crashed into the side of a Volkswagen in which she was riding, was awarded a $3 million judgment yesterday for her crippling injuries.

A Superior Court jury deliberated about 2-1/2 days before returning its verdict in favor of Virginia Castro, 38.

Castro was not present as the verdict was read in the courtroom of Superior Court Judge James A. Malkus, who presided over the eight-week trial.

Jurors ruled unanimously that the Volkswagen in which she was a passenger failed to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer might expect and that the car’s design caused her to suffer injuries.

The jury also found that the motorcycle driver, Darren Joseph Becker, was negligent and that his negligence was a legal cause of the accident resulting in Castro’s injuries.

"Maybe this will make her life easier," said Castro’s attorney, T. Michael Reed. "Mexico has no medical care and no social services for people like her."

The accident occurred Feb. 6, 1980, at Third Avenue and Oxford Street in Chula Vista.

Witnesses said the car went into the intersection as the light changed from green to yellow. The motorcycle driven by Becker slammed into the passenger side of the car.

Becker, who represented himself, said he was timing the signal lights when he ran into the car.

Becker suffered a fracture of his left leg.

Testimony was presented that the Volkswagen’s passenger-side door crumpled inward and struck Castro on her right side, breaking some ribs.

Reed said the impact ruptured Castro’s aorta, cutting off the blood supply to her spinal cord and paralyzing her.

Both sides in the lawsuit conducted engineering and impact tests of Volkswagen doors. Reed said the jury found that the Volkswagen door was insufficient under U.S. laws to protect passengers.

Reed argued that if a beam had been installed in the door of the 1971 Volkswagen, Castro would not have suffered the paralyzing injuries.

Attorney R. Reaves Elledge, representing Volkswagen of America, argued that the door’s design was not a factor, that Castro would have been severely injured if the door had had a beam.

Jurors said after the verdict that they did not believe the Volkswagen experts called to testify.

Reed said Castro supports herself by operating a small beauty shop in Tijuana, giving haircuts to make a living. He said she averages about $40 to $50 a week.

The testimony during the trial was that Castro had closed a deal to buy a beauty shop where she worked the day the accident occurred. The deal was never consummated.