Facts

On Feb. 15, 2005, just before sunrise, plaintiff Rose Sibrian parked her car in the United States Post Office's employee parking lot and began walking down an alley (Dead Cat Alley in Woodland, CA). From the alley, she reached 4th Street, which did not have a marked or unmarked crosswalk. On 4th Street, defendant Janet Hewitt's vehicle was stopped behind another car, which was turning into the alley near where the plaintiff was standing. According to the defense, rather than wait for the car to turn into the alley and allow the defendant's car behind it to proceed, the plaintiff walked in front of the right turning car and into the path of the defendant who had pull to the left to go around the car in front that was turning right. As plaintiff crossed 4th Street, defendant's vehicle struck plaintiff and plaintiff fell to the ground.

Sibrian sued Hewitt for vehicle negligence.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Sibrian asserted that even though she knew the defendant was close by, she expected the defendant to wait for the car in front to finish its right turn and as such she thought she had time to cross the street in front of the defendant's vehicle. The plaintiff claimed that the area where Dead Cat Alley and 4th street met constituted an "intersection" and that the defendant violated a vehicle code that prohibits passing within an intersection or 100 feet before it.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Hewitt testified that because it was still dawn and because the plaintiff was wearing her gray postal uniform, and because the car in front was blocking the defendant's view of the plaintiff, the defendant did not see the plaintiff and could not have been expected to see the plaintiff. On the other hand, the plaintiff did in fact see the defendant and should have waited for the defendant to pass before crossing the street at an area where there was no marked or unmarked or implied cross walk. The defendant also contended that where an ally and a street meet there is no intersection and that the judge should not have given a negligence per se instruction to the jury that the defendant was at fault for passing in an intersection.

Injuries

Sibrian suffered right ankle pain, buttock pain, lower back pain, and required physical therapy. According to the defense, Sibrian stopped treatment after about 6 weeks. Two and a half years later she started up her treatment again, this time with a pain specialists who provided radio frequency ablation treatments to her facet joints and claimed that the plaintiff would need similar treatments for the rest of her life.

Result

The jury found the plaintiff was 50% at fault and the defendant was 50% at fault and awarded a total verdict of $222,600, which was reduced by 50% for the plaintiff's comparative fault.

Other Information

According to the defense, the defendant has appealed the verdict based on the erroneous negligence per se instruction regarding passing on the left. FILING DATE: Nov. 2, 2006.