Michelin settles Texas church van case

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (Oct. 22)—Michelin North America Inc. settled a lawsuit in Texas involving a 15-passenger church van the day after jury selection began. "Michelin has resolved the suit to its satisfaction and maintains that the 9-year-old tire in question had no quality or workmanship issues," the Greenville, S.C.-based tire maker said in a news release. Four women were killed and eight disabled in the rollover crash of the Dodge Ram van in May 2001. The plaintiffs alleged that a tread separation on a Michelin tire on the vehicle caused the rollover, and that the tire was defective. Michelin's settlement leaves DaimlerChrysler Corp., maker of the van, as the sole defendant in the case.