Pouliot v. Fitzsimmons
| Decision Date | 30 July 1998 |
| Docket Number | No. C3-96-1545,C3-96-1545 |
| Citation | 582 N.W.2d 221 |
| Court | Minnesota Supreme Court |
| Parties | Janice POULIOT, et al., Respondents, v. Sharon Marie FITZSIMMONS, et al., petitioners, Appellants. |
Syllabus by the Court
The court of appeals inappropriately substituted its judgment for that of the jury and the trial court when it reversed the trial court's order denying judgment notwithstanding the verdict.
Terri Hummerding, Cardlin & Wright, Bloomington, for appellants.
Allan Shapiro, Allan Shapiro & Assoc., PA, Minneapolis, for respondents.
Considered and decided by the court en banc without oral argument.
On January 20, 1993, appellant Sharon Fitzsimmons lost control of her vehicle while driving in inclement weather along County Road 42 in Prior Lake, Minnesota and collided with respondent Janice Pouliot's vehicle that was stopped on the opposite side of the road. Pouliot was severely injured in the accident and sued Fitzsimmons for damages on a claim of negligence. The jury found that Fitzsimmons was not negligent in the operation of her vehicle and Pouliot's post-trial motion for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV) was denied. The court of appeals reversed on the basis that the evidence of negligence was so overwhelming that reasonable minds could not differ. On review here, we reverse the court of appeals and reinstate the trial court's order denying JNOV.
The circumstances leading up to this unfortunate incident began at approximately 12:30 p.m., on January 20, 1993, when Pouliot left her office at Carver County Social Services, where she worked as a case aide in the child and family unit, to transport a child to a shelter in Burnsville, Minnesota. She first drove to the child's home in Chaska to pick up articles the child would need while in placement. She described the weather at that time as "a nice day," cloudy and breezy--then it started to sprinkle. Between 1:00 and 1:20 that afternoon she drove on U.S. Highway 212 to State Highway 101 then to County Road 17 and onto eastbound County Road 42. As Pouliot turned onto County Road 42 she heard ice pellets strike her windshield. She tested her brakes and reduced her speed to between 40 to 45 miles per hour. Evidence at trial indicated that the temperature between the hours of 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport ranged from 20 to 26 degrees with freezing rain developing.
Pouliot first saw Fitzsimmons' vehicle approaching from the opposite direction on County Road 42. She noticed that it was fishtailing within its lane and recalled that it seemed to be moving "very quickly," so Pouliot pulled off the highway onto the right shoulder of the road. She believed that she came to a complete stop before being struck by the Fitzsimmons' vehicle, which skidded for about 1-1/2 blocks before it collided with her car. Pouliot, Fitzsimmons, and Fitzsimmons' daughter, a passenger in the Fitzsimmons' vehicle, were knocked unconscious on impact.
Fitzsimmons lived in Prior Lake at the time of the accident. Her daughter had been driving the family vehicle and had just returned home from Bloomington, a journey of approximately 25 minutes, moments before Fitzsimmons began driving that day. Fitzsimmons' daughter testified that she could not recall what she said to her mother about driving conditions but believed that she "mentioned something to the fact of the weather." On redirect examination the following exchange took place:
BY [PLAINTIFF'S COUNSEL]:
Q When you were asked whether there was any change in weather when you were driving with your mother, I believe--isn't it true that you had testified that right before you got home, it was either raining or snowing when you were driving the Jeep?
A Uh-huh, yes.
Q That's why you told your mother it was slippery?
A Yes.
Fitzsimmons, however, did not recall her daughter saying anything to her about road conditions. As the two women left the Fitzsimmons' house to get into the vehicle, Fitzsimmons noticed that the sidewalk was "just a little slippery." Fitzsimmons drove without incident for several miles before the collision occurred and had no trouble stopping at the intersection of State Highway 13 and County Road 42. She did not place the vehicle into four-wheel drive because she believed that "[t]he road conditions were fine," even though it was drizzling. She believes that she drove with her windshield wipers on. Fitzsimmons could not recall the speed she was driving while on County Road 42 but believed that because the roads were fine she could drive at the posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour. She was not aware of the freezing air temperature and did not become aware of the slippery conditions until her vehicle began to fishtail moments before the collision. Her vehicle began to skid just after she passed through the intersection at County Road 83, but having no recollection of whether the light was green or red, Fitzsimmons did not remember whether she was "slowly" accelerating back up to the speed limit from a complete stop or from a slow down. Fitzsimmons' daughter's only memory of events taking place near the intersection of County Road 83 and County Road 42 was "seeing the other car and having to turn around and grab [her] seat." When her vehicle began to skid, Fitzsimmons took her foot off the accelerator and tried to steer out of the skid, but without success. She did not recall her vehicle crossing the yellow line or the impact with Pouliot's vehicle.
Both Pouliot and Fitzsimmons agreed that there was no salt or sand apparent on County Road 42, nor visible evidence of ice or snow on the road, and the road was not slippery prior to the collision. The only testimony regarding the speed of the Fitzsimmons' vehicle when she lost control of her vehicle was from Pouliot, that it was moving "very quickly," and from Fitzsimmons, that she was accelerating from slowing down or stopping at the intersection of County Road 83 and County Road 42, a point approximately 2 blocks from the site of the collision. As to road conditions of County Road 42 before the...
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