A New Jersey judge has ruled that the person who sends a text to a driver cannot be held liable if an accident occurs.
Judge David Rand threw out a lawsuit against Shannon Colonna , stating, according to the Star-Ledger that:
“I find that there was no aiding, abetting here in the legal sense.”
Colonna was being sued by David and Linda Kubert who were hit by her boyfriend Kyle Best, then 18, as they rode on a motorcycle on September 21, 2009.
The lawsuit alleges, according to AZCentral , that Colonna was partially at fault for causing the wreck, because Best was texting while driving on his way home from the Randolph YMCA.
The Star-Ledger reports that Stephen “Skippy” Weinstein, the Kuberts’ attorney, sued Best originally, who pleaded guilty to distracted driving. He soon amended the suit to include Colonna, because she testified that she was texting with him just before the accident occurred.
Weinstein’s argument, according to AZCentral , was that Shannon Colonna should have known, or did know that Best was driving, and should not have been texting him. Her actions, according to Weinstein’s argument, made her partially liable for thhe incident, which left both David and Linda Kubert amputees.
Judge Rand did state to the court, according to the Star-Ledger , that his decision to throw out the case did not dilute the importance of attentive driving. He stated that:
“We expect more of our drivers. We expect more of the people who are given the license and privilege to operate vehicles on our highways. I find that there was no aiding, abetting here in the legal sense. I find it is unreasonable to impose a duty upon the defendant in this case under these facts. Were I to extend this duty, in my judgment any form of distraction could potentially serve as basis of a liability case.”
Do you think that Shannon Colonna was partially at fault for causing the accident between Kyle Best and the Kuberts?
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