(Reuters) - A Los Angeles jury on Friday ordered Johnson & Johnson's DePuy orthopedic unit to pay more than $8 million in damages to a retired Montana prison guard who claimed he was injured by a recalled metal hip sold by the company.

The lawsuit was the first of more than 10,000 brought against the J&J unit after the 2010 recall, which was prompted by recognition that the devices were failing at higher-than-expected rates. Some 93,000 ASR hips were sold prior to the recall.

(Reporting By Deena Beasley; Editing by Alden Bentley)