VISTA -- A Superior Court jury awarded slain Oceanside police Officer Tony Zeppetella's widow $3.6 million in damages Thursday, finding that the companies involved with making Zeppetella's bullet-resistant vest failed to adequately warn him about its risks.

The jury found that the failure to warn was a "substantial factor" in the death of Zeppetella, who was killed in a 2003 gunbattle in the line of duty.

Jurors split 9-3 on most of the questions posed to them in the civil trial of the lawsuit Zeppetella's widow, Jamie Zeppetella, filed against the companies. Nine out of 12 jurors have to agree to reach a verdict in a civil case.

The jury, which deliberated about a week, was unable to reach a verdict, however, on whether the bullet-resistant vest Zeppetella wore had a design defect that contributed to his death.

Jurors awarded Jamie Zeppetella and her son, Jakob, $2.1 million in economic damages for the income Tony Zeppetella, 27, would have earned to provide for his family, gifts he would have given them, and the value of other support he would have provided to his family over the course of his life. The jury also awarded $1.5 million for the loss of his love and companionship due to his death.

The Zeppetella family stands to receive only about $2.5 million of the $3.6 million in total damages the jury awarded. The jury decided that the man on death row for shooting Zeppetella, Adrian George Camacho, was responsible for 70 percent of the $1.5 million damage award, or $1,050,000. But the Zeppetellas previously dropped Camacho from the lawsuit because the criminal justice system held him accountable, Emerson said.

Second Chance Body Armor, which made Tony Zeppetella's vest, and Toyobo Co. Ltd., which produced the Zylon fiber used to make ballistic panels in the vest, are both responsible for the full $2.1 million in economic damages. Attorneys in the case had agreed to that amount if the jury found the companies liable.

The jury decided Second Chance was responsible for only 20 percent of the $1.5 million damage award, or $300,000, and that Toyobo was responsible for 10 percent, or $150,000.

Outside the courtroom, Jamie Zeppetella said she was "really glad" the jury found both companies partially liable.

"That's what I was fighting for -- for everyone who was responsible to be held accountable," Jamie Zeppetella said. "I think this does that."

Jamie Zeppetella's attorney, Greg Emerson, said the verdict brought "peace of mind" to the Zeppetella family and was a "gratifying moment."

Toyobo's lead attorney, Michael Lyle, said he will file a motion asking Judge Michael Anello to set aside the verdict. James Huston, another attorney for Toyobo, explained that in such a motion, the judge is asked to review the case and make sure that everything the jury decided is supported by the evidence.

"We don't believe the evidence supports a verdict against Toyobo," Huston said.

Robert Green, Second Chance's attorney, said he anticipates filing a similar motion.

"I'm disappointed with the result because I believe no matter what vest Officer Zeppetella was wearing, he would have died," Green said.

Tony Zeppetella was shot to death June 13, 2003, during a traffic stop in the parking lot of the Navy Federal Credit Union on Avenida de la Plata in Oceanside. Adrian Camacho was convicted in November 2005 of first-degree murder for the crime and was sentenced in February to death.

In November 2003, Jamie Zeppetella filed a lawsuit against Second Chance and Toyobo.

During the trial, Emerson argued that the shooting left a hole in Zeppetella's vest that shouldn't be there. Officials at Second Chance Body Armor and Toyobo knew of problems with Zylon degrading and losing strength when exposed to heat, light and humidity, but continued to use it in the vests, Emerson argued.

Attorneys for Toyobo and Second Chance argued that no vest made of any ballistic material could have stopped the gunshot in question because of the type of bullet involved, the angle at which it struck the vest, and the direction in which the bullet was traveling. Lyle also argued that a different gunshot, which did not strike the vest, would have killed Zeppetella even if the vest had stopped the first bullet.

The jury foreman, Keith, a 30-year-old accountant from Carlsbad who declined to give his last name, said the jury could not reach a verdict on whether or not the vest failed. Jurors were split fairly evenly about whether the vest had a defect because of the angle and location of the shot and whether another shot could have been fatal, Keith said.

"The evidence was weak on both sides," he said. "There was no smoking gun. There was no obvious evidence."

Juror Denice James, 51, of Oceanside, who works for the state Department of Corrections, said jurors reached a decision early on about the companies' failure to warn Zeppetella, but were split down the middle on the whether the vest had a design defect.

The jury believed that Second Chance and Toyobo knew enough information about potential problems with the vest before the shooting that should have been disclosed to consumers and would have provided Tony Zeppetella some alternatives regarding his vest, Keith said.

"It was all internal information, and we felt it didn't get to the end user in time, or to the end user at all," Keith said.

James also said the companies should have warned Zeppetella.

"If they had warned him, he would have had the opportunity to upgrade his vest," James said. "He would have had the opportunity to research for himself. He never got the opportunity to make a conscious decision. … If he would have been warned, we wouldn't be here."

Emerson has said Zeppetella paid $313 of his own money to "upgrade" to the Zylon vest at issue in the lawsuit. He bought the vest through Professional Police Supply Inc., a retailer that agreed last year to pay $165,000 to Jamie and Jakob Zeppetella to settle its portion of the lawsuit without admitting any liability.

Second Chance Body Armor Inc. filed for bankruptcy in October 2004 in the wake of several lawsuits related to its vests. Armor Holdings Inc., a Florida-based company, bought Second Chance's assets -- excluding any liability for legal claims related to Zylon vests -- last year for $45 million. Armor Holdings then created a new company, Second Chance Armor Inc., which is in business today but is not involved with the Zeppetella lawsuit, a spokesman for the company said in an e-mail.

Green said insurance for the former Second Chance Body Armor company would cover the amounts the jury ordered the company to pay the Zeppetella family if the verdict stands.

As they have on many points throughout the trial, Emerson and Green disagreed Thursday on what the jury said with its verdict.

"This jury found that there was no defect in this vest and that Adrian Camacho was 70 percent responsible for this shooting," Green said. "I think that's an important statement."

Emerson said, however, that the jury said through its verdict that Tony Zeppetella's vest failed him and that is why he is dead.

"The vest failed to stop the bullet and the jury found that's what killed Tony," Emerson said.

Jamie Zeppetella said she does not know what she'll do next now that the criminal and civil trials related to her husband's death are over, but that she does have some ideas about reaching out to the community, getting involved in charities and "giving back to the community that's given so much to us."

Staff writer Teri Figueroa contributed to this report. Contact staff writer Scott Marshall at (760) 631-6623 or smarshall@nctimes.com.