What opens the door — and what never does
Ordinary negligence — a missed glance on Magnolia, a late merge in the 91/60/215 — does not support punitives, no matter how bad the injuries. The statute wants conduct a jury can call despicable or consciously indifferent: impaired driving with knowledge of the risk, street racing, fleeing with a victim down, a documented pattern of extreme distraction. Conduct opens the door. Damage size does not.
How numbers actually work
No multiplier chart. Juries weigh reprehensibility, the scale of harm, and the defendant’s finances — punishment has to sting, so net worth can become discoverable. Constitutional limits usually keep ratios to compensatory damages in single digits. Practically, the claim’s value is often what it does before a verdict, not a fantasy trial number.
Why the lever works
A live punitive count puts the driver’s own assets in play while the insurer can fund only the compensatory side. People with 91-commute jobs, licenses, or property settle differently under that math. Pleading it means proving the conduct — the evidence trail in the DUI-victim guide is the usual engine, and the worth-it analysis is where leverage meets collectability. National drunk-driving risk data explains why these files keep appearing; it does not decide your case.
Honest limits
Higher proof, sometimes a split trial, later reductions — these counts are pursued seriously or left out. Most pleaded cases still settle. The settlement simply lands where the personal exposure pointed. If impairment or worse is in your facts, have the conduct reviewed before anyone treats it as an ordinary rear-end.
