Mattera v. Avis Rent A Car System, Inc.
| Decision Date | 01 December 1997 |
| Docket Number | No. 1,No. 2,1,2 |
| Citation | 665 N.Y.S.2d 94,245 A.D.2d 274 |
| Parties | , 1997 N.Y. Slip Op. 10,332 Edward MATTERA, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. AVIS RENT A CAR SYSTEM, INC., Defendant-Respondent, City of New York, et al., Appellants (Action). Jeremiah KELLEHER, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. CITY OF NEW YORK, et al., Appellants, Edward Mattera, et al., Defendants (Action). |
| Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
Jeffrey D. Friedlander, Acting Corporation Counsel, New York City (Barry P. Schwartz and Janet L. Zaleon, of counsel), for appellants in Action No. 1 and Action No. 2.
Raymond A. Raskin, Brooklyn (Joyce M. Raskin, of counsel), for plaintiff-respondent in Action No. 1.
Lysaght, Lysaght & Kramer, P.C., Lake Success (Joseph L. Decolator, of counsel), for plaintiff-respondent in Action No. 2.
Bruce A. Lawrence, Brooklyn (William Balletti and Christine Fontaine, of counsel), for defendant Edward Mattera in Action No. 2.
Before COPERTINO, J.P., and SULLIVAN, PIZZUTO and LERNER, JJ.
MEMORANDUM BY THE COURT.
In related actions to recover damages for personal injuries, the defendants City of New York and Edward Snow in Action No. 1 and the defendants City of New York, New York City Police Department, and Edward Snow in Action No. 2 appeal, as limited by their brief, from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Jackson, J.), dated April 8, 1996, as granted the separate motions of the plaintiff in Action No. 1, Edward Mattera, and the plaintiff in Action No. 2, Jeremiah Kelleher, for summary judgment against them on the issue of liability.
ORDERED that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with one bill of costs.
Jeremiah Kelleher, a New York City police detective, was a passenger in a car driven by another detective, Edward Snow, responding to the scene of a buy-and-bust operation where a suspect was being held. Snow made a left turn and was struck by an oncoming vehicle driven by Edward Mattera. The detectives' car was unmarked and had no flashing lights or sirens operating.
The Supreme Court properly concluded that Snow's conduct in making a left turn in front of Mattera's oncoming vehicle was negligent as a matter of law (see, Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1141; Lester v. Jolicofur, 120 A.D.2d 574, 502 N.Y.S.2d 61; Kiernan v. Edwards, 97 A.D.2d 750, 468 N.Y.S.2d 381; see also, Nunziata v. Birchell, 238 A.D.2d 555, 656 N.Y.S.2d 383). On these facts, the privilege afforded to operators of authorized emergency vehicles engaged in an...
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