Reports from Congressional hearings on Toyota

Reports are starting to come in regarding the Congressional hearings on Toyota. Make sure you come back to check this post as I will be updating it with more links as they become available. Here is the first one: Law.com reports that James Lentz, president of the automaker's U.S. distribution unit, testified yesterday before Congress that two factors contributed to the unexpected acceleration that consumers say has caused accidents: lack of communication within the company about prior recalls, and pressure to increase production at the expense of safety. I guess it is interesting, if it wasn't so insulting, to hear an automotive industry executive admitting that his company is more interesting in making profits even if it comes at the expense of the safety of the consumer. Obviously, this is nothing new; anyone who has followed the automotive industry over the years knows this is true, but you don't hear the company CEOs (and certainly not the marketing departments) admitting to it publicly very often. UPDATES: AboutLawsuits.com reports that Toyota Motor Corp. is now the target of a federal criminal investigation. Wall Street Journal Law Blog NPR's show "All Things Considered" (you can read the story or listen to the broadcast) (thanks to TortsProf blog for this link)