Posas v. Horton
Nevada Supreme Court
228 P.3d 457 (2010)
Posas (plaintiff) stopped suddenly to avoid hitting a pedestrian who stepped into traffic, and Horton (defendant), following closely behind, rear-ended her; Horton admitted at trial that she hadn't seen the pedestrian and had "made a mistake" following too closely, with evidence showing her bumper was within four feet of Posas's before the crash. The trial court nonetheless gave the jury a sudden-emergency instruction over Posas's objection, the jury found for Horton, and the trial court denied Posas's motion for a new trial.
Whether a driver whose vehicle strikes the rear of another vehicle is entitled to a sudden-emergency jury instruction when the driver claims she was confronted with an emergency she did not create.