Janice Marie Hershey, Individually and as Adminstrator to the Estate of Russell Hershey v. Nettie Chaffin

Automobile Accident - This case arises out of an automobile accident that occurred on
October 11, 1995, at the intersection of 12th Avenue N.E. and
Highway 65 in Hampton, Iowa. Plaintiff Janice Hershey ("Hershey")
was operating her vehicle in a northerly direction on Highway 65.
Defendant Nettie Chaffin ("Chaffin") stopped her car in obedience
to a stop sign on 12th Avenue N.E. facing west. After stopping at
the stop sign approximately ten feet from the curb line, Chaffin
drove forward into the path of Hershey's vehicle and the crash
occurred. Hershey's husband, Russell, was a passenger in the front
seat. He sustained severe bodily injuries (including a closed head
injury and loss of an eye) in the accident, and died February 24,
1998, of unrelated causes. Hershey also sustained injuries to her
chest and her finger.

Hershey testified, prior to the accident, she was driving at a
speed of thirty to thirty-five miles per hour in a thirty-five
mile per hour speed zone. The investigating police officer
testified Hershey told him she first saw Chaffin's car as it began
to pull out from the stop sign. Hershey testified she slammed on
the brakes and tried unsuccessfully to swerve to avoid a collision
with Chaffin's vehicle as it entered the northbound lane of
Highway 65. The driver's side front fender of Chaffin's vehicle
collided with the passenger front corner of the Hersheys' vehicle.
The investigating officer observed no skid marks or gouge marks on
the roadway at the scene of the crash. Chaffin testified she did
not see the Hershey vehicle before the impact.

A disinterested witness, Lowell Lange ("Lange"), testified he had
stopped on 12th Avenue N.E. facing east prior to the collision. He
saw the crash occur after Chaffin's car had moved forward
approximately six to nine feet. Lange testified, in view of how
quickly the impact occurred after Chaffin's vehicle began moving,
and considering reaction time, Hershey "really couldn't have
avoided [the impact]." He did not observe whether Hershey
attempted evasive action such as braking or swerving.

The district court concluded there was not sufficient evidence of
Hershey's negligence in the record to support the submission of
comparative fault to the jury. Chaffin objected to the court's
failure to instruct on comparative fault and claimed one
interpretation of the evidence could be Hershey failed to maintain
a proper lookout.

The jury returned a verdict finding Chaffin's
negligence caused damages to Hershey in the amount of $154,076,
and to Russell's estate in the amount of $310,046.55.

Unknown

Unknown

Affirmed by the Court of Appeals of Iowa. See: ___ N.W.2d ___ (Iowa App. 11-23-99). Note: The above date reflects the appellate court decision date, not the original trial date. Reported by kkm. Processed JF