In Aloi v. County of Tompkins , Richard Reed was driving a Tompkins County vehicle in which Sandra Aloi was a passenger when the car suddenly fishtailed into oncoming traffic. When Richard tried to get the vehicle back on course, it "veered to the right side of the road," struck a mailbox and then collided with a pickup truck driven by Jeffrey Kelly. (The truck struck the vehicle's passenger side and injured Sandra.)
When the Tompkins County Supreme Court denied the parties' request for relief in their favor, they appealed to the Appellate Division, Third Department, which agreed that a formal hearing or trial was necessary.
Whether Richard's driving was negligent was for a jury to decide, particularly since Sandra conceded he wasn't driving recklessly nor aware if he exceeded the speed limit.
Kelly, on the other hand, claimed to be free of liability given the "emergency" nature of the situation. While the "emergency doctrine" shields parties from liability when their actions were "reasonable and prudent" given the context, since there was disagreement over whether Kelly's truck came to a complete stop before the collision and whether he acted reasonably under the circumstances, those issues were also left for the jury's determination.
This could drive a person crazy .
To download a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Aloi v County of Tompkins