The Defendants were performing a street sweeping operation on Independence Boulevard in Charlotte, North Carolina. The driver of a motorcycle lost control as he was approaching the operation. His wife was thrown from the vehicle and was killed as a result of the incident.
The Court held that the testimony of Defendant's expert that the driver of a motorcycle had sufficient time to safely brake before the accident was sufficient to allow the trial judge to instruct the jury on intervening negligence. The Court further held that the expert's testimony was reliable and met the standards of Daubert. The Court held that when considering all of the factors considered by the expert, including deposition review, site inspections, skid marks and Google Earth, his testimony was reliable. Finally, the Court held that a violation of a guideline from the Manuel for Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) does not warrant negligence per se instruction.
Submitted by Colin Scott, McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLP
