Getchell v. Lodge
Supreme Court of Alaska
65 P.3d 50 (2003)
Barbara Lodge (defendant), driving 10 mph under the speed limit on an icy highway, slammed her brakes when a moose entered the road, causing her car to spin into oncoming traffic and collide with Joyce Getchell (plaintiff); Lodge's expert testified she had extremely limited reaction time and that an average driver could not have avoided crossing into the other lane. Getchell sued for negligence per se based on Lodge's statutory violation of crossing the center line; the jury found for Lodge, and the trial court denied Getchell's post-trial motions, prompting her appeal.
Whether an actor's statutory violation is generally excused if it results from the actor being confronted with an emergency not caused by the actor's own conduct.