A Washington jury awarded $17.5 million Friday to a man who suffered severe injuries in a power-line accident four years ago. In 1998, James Kuntz was working as a subcontractor for Lamar Corporation, an advertising business based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when he was sent to Athol, Idaho to work on a project. While installing a vinyl billboard, a metal pole he was using touched a 14,400-volt power line, throwing Kuntz 40 feet to the ground. He lost both of his arms and suffered permanent paralysis in the accident.

Kuntz filed suit against his former employer and Kootenai Electric of Hayden, Idaho in November 2000, alleging the companies did not implement proper safety guidelines before the project began. Kootenai had allegedly moved the power line closer to the billboard shortly before the accident occurred.