One of these is on the value and function of a jury.  He stated that jurors are not judges without robes but rather they as cumulative body reflect and speak in this case as the “conscience of the community”.  I liked that, but I wondered if that was the law in Kentucky.

And yes it is.  Powerful language, and the recognition of a role that goes back hundreds of years.

The judicial decision regarding when to save the interpretative function for the court and when to delegate the interpretative function to the jury is crucial to the development of negligence law. The more judges take cases away from juries, the more the concepts of reasonable conduct, negligence and gross negligence become synonymous with the view of the judge or judges on that court. Likewise, the more the interpretative power is delegated to juries, the more these concepts become the aggregate of discrete findings by juries. See L. Green, Judge and Jury (1930). By delegating interpretation to a jury the judiciary allows current considerations of equity and common sense to modify what might otherwise become anachronistic principles. L. Green, supra, at 385-91. The role of the jury in interpreting the evidence and finding the ultimate facts [**5] is an American tradition so fundamental as to merit constitutional recognition. U.S. Const. Amend. VII; Ky. Const. Sec. 7. The conscience of the community speaks through the verdict of the jury, not the judge’s view of the evidence. It may well be that deciding when to take a case away from the jury is a matter of degree, a line drawn in sand, but this is all the more reason why the judiciary should be careful not to overstep the line.

Horton v. Union Light, Heat & Power Co., No. 84-SC-80-DG, Supreme Court of Kentucky, 690 S.W.2d 382; 1985 Ky. LEXIS 220, April 11, 1985 ,  Rehearing Denied June 14, 1985

Here is the Courier-Journal story.

Pedestrian fatalities on rise in Louisville

The number of pedestrian fatalities in Louisville this year is on pace to be one of the highest since merger in 2003 — despite a city campaign stressing road safety.

Through Wednesday, 15 pedestrians have been killed this year, compared to 10 in all of 2009. The numbers include bicyclists and people struck while standing outside broken-down vehicles along the road.

The highest number of pedestrian deaths since merger came in 2008, when there were 27 deaths — 24 pedestrians and three bicyclists.

Police and safety officials say they’ve not identified any single reason for the increased number of deaths this year over last.

The increased number of deaths by pedestrians continues in spite of a city wide program to help prevent them.

See the following story this summer from WLKY.com:  City Pushes For Safety After 3 Pedestrian Deaths, Mayor, Police Chief Share Personal Stories Of Safety Issues

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Three recent pedestrian deaths on Louisville streets are eye opening reality checks on what can happen when motorists, cyclists and pedestrians don’t follow the rules of the road.The city unveiled a new phase of an ongoing marketing campaign to reduce the deadly numbers on Friday. The city launched the Street Sense campaign last summer and the new phase unveiled Friday morning has new ads and new messages targeting unsafe behavior. City officials said the drivers are not always at fault.

One accident involved a rescue near the intersection of Breckenridge Lane and Sudbury Lane, a MetroSafe Communications supervisor said.

A black truck going south on Breckinridge Lane took a curb too fast and sideswiped a KIA at around 2:45 p.m. on Friday, September 24, 2010, said Louisville Metro Police spokeswoman Alicia Smiley.

The impact caused the truck to turn sideways and it was T-boned by a Lexus SUV, Smiley said.

The driver of the truck had to be rescued and was taken to University Hospital in critical condition. Police believe he was driving under the influence of alcohol, but he has not been charged, Smiley said.

For example, a Kentucky decision in the Court of Appeals – Spivey v. Sheeler, 514 S.W.2d 667 (Ky.,1974) – addressed the standard of responsibility when a pistol was left locked in a cabinet but the key was easily available on top of the cabinet. The results were tragic as a twelve-year-old boy sustained injuries when 11-year-old friend shot him with a .25 caliber pistol which the friend had obtained from his father’s locked gun case by using the key found on top of the case, and the boy’s parents brought an action against the friend’s parents. The Court of Appeals held that even though a parent is generally not responsible for the torts of his child, a parent may be liable for injuries which his minor child inflicts with a firearm, given to the child by the parent, or left accessible to the child.

Although the Kentucky decision has no applicability in Indiana, it is the law in Kentucky and illustrates the danger that needs to be prevented to protected our children.

Here is the Courier-Journal story:

“5-year-old girl shot in head in Jeffersonville

A 5-year-old girl was shot in the head in Jeffersonville Friday night in what police said appears to be an accident involving children playing with a gun.

* * *

There were adults home at the time but they were outside on the porch, Hollis said. He said the adults heard a gunshot, then a child crying and ran inside, where they found the girl bleeding from her head.

She was conscious and alert when she was taken to Kosair Children’s Hospital, Hollis said. Doctors were planning surgery Friday night.

It is not clear who owned the gun but it had been in the home prior to the incident, Hollis said.

No foul play is suspected, but it hasn’t been determined whether any charges will be filed against anyone involved, he said.

As one reader commented – “The reason that it is “not an accident” is not due to the weapon being fired willfully at another child (who didn’t understand the dangers), but it is not an accident because the weapon was deliberately left unsecured by adults who are supposed to be responsible with it.”  Although “deliberately” may be an overstatement based upon the report, the weapon appears to have been left unsecured.

According to the Courier-Journal story, 39 year-old Tina Christie of Fort Knox was struck and killed Monday night after she pulled her van off the highway and got out of her van.  Although it is reported that the other driver did not see her and that no charges are expected to be filed, the family should still take the police report to the Fort Knox Legal Assistance Office for a JAG review to discuss their options or contact a personal injury attorney.   Just because there are no criminal charges does not mean there is no civil liability since Kentucky has comparative negligence.   If for no other reason, a legal review of options should assist survivors in reaching some form of closure and answer lingering questions.

Here is the Courier Journal story:

A woman who was killed Monday night after being struck by a van in the 12000 block of Dixie Highway in southwest Jefferson County has been identified as 39-year-old Tina R. Christie of Fort Knox.

Christie was struck after she pulled her southbound van off the road and then exited the vehicle for an unknown reason.

The driver of another southbound van apparently did not see her and struck her, said Dwight Mitchell, a Louisville Metro Police spokesman.

Christie was pronounced dead at the scene about 10:40 p.m. and died from multiple blunt force injuries, said Sam Weakley, a Jefferson County deputy coroner.

Weakley said Christie and her husband had just relocated to Fort Knox from Greenville, S.C.

There were three children inside Christie’s van and no charges are expected to be filed against the driver of the other van, police said.

The woman driving the Mirage was taken to University Hospital.

Anytime a car accident results in a death, it is imperative to consult with an attorney as soon as possible to preserve evidence and to ensure your rights are protected. This information is provided by Louisville, Kentucky attorney Finis Price. Please feel free to contact me directly for if you have any questions or would like more information.

Any time students are involved in a motor vehicle collision in a school bus there is cause for concern. Many issues arise outside of the normal questions that need to be asked in a normal car accident. Was the school bus driver properly trained? Was the school bus in proper working order? Is there any fault on the part of the school bus driver for causing the collision or becoming distracted? Are there any potential product defects with the school bus? Who will pay for the injured passenger’s medical bills?

These are but a few of the questions which need to be answered and considered in cases such as this incident in Lee County – and this is why anyone injured in such a collision needs an experienced attorney on their side.

There have been a string of heavy equipment injuries recently due to the Spring season approaching.  Obviously, some of these injuries can be avoided by proper safety precautions and training, however some cannot be avoided to do product design and defect. As the country is discovering with the Toyota Recall, often times companies find it in their financial best interests to ignore or hide defects in order to ensure financial success of a product.  When this occurs, serious liability results due to the manufacturer’s or designer’s knowledge of the danger and failure to rectify the hazard.

Indiana State Police trooper Andy Wandersee arrived along with Wayne County deputies to find the driver of a red Ford Ranger had fled the scene. The pickup, heading the wrong direction, had struck two vehicles nearly head-on with the debris damaging a third vehicle, a tractor-trailer, police said.

The driver of the pickup was located a short time later, hiding behind the Indiana State Police Scale House at the 148-mile marker westbound. Arrested was Archie Napier, 42, of New Castle.

He and a second driver, whose identity was not available from police, were taken to Reid Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Napier was treated and released from Reid before being booked into the Wayne County Jail at about 4:45 a.m. Friday.

Napier is charged with leaving the scene of an accident causing serious bodily injury, a Class D felony; operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury, a Class D felony; operating while intoxicated with a blood-alcohol content of .15 percent or higher, a Class A misdemeanor; reckless driving, a Class B misdemeanor; and operating while intoxicated, a Class C misdemeanor.