Two Rivers Bank & Trust v. Atanasova , No. 11-2977 (8th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseThis negligence action grew out of a highway collision. Kala Holtkamp was driving at night with her fiance, Christopher Davis, and her two-year-old son, K.H., when she collided with the rear of a semi truck driven by Vanya Atanasova. Davis was killed, K.H. was seriously injured, and Holtkamp was injured. Holtkamp, K.H.'s father, and representatives for Davis and K.H. (collectively, Appellees) brought this action for negligence and loss of consortium against Atanasova and Venture One, Inc., the truck's dispatcher. A jury found both Atanasova and Holtkamp negligent, apportioning ninety percent of the fault to Atanasova and ten percent to Holtkamp. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err by giving certain jury instructions; (2) the district court did not err in excluding evidence of Holtkamp's drug use and of the citation she received for following too closely; (3) the jury's allocation of fault between Atanasova and Holtkamp was not against the weight of the evidence; (4) the district court did not err in denying Appellants' motion for judgment as a matter of law on Finley's claim for loss of consortium with K.H.; and (5) the damage awards did not require judicial interference with the jury's verdict.
Court Description: Civil case - Torts. There was sufficient evidence to support the specifications of negligence contained in the jury instructions; district court did not abuse its discretion by excluding evidence regarding drug use as there was no evidence the driver had used marijuana on the day of the accident and the prejudicial effect of the evidence outweighed any probative value; no error in excluding evidence regarding a traffic citation issued in connection with the accident where the citation was contested; jury's apportionment of fault was supported by the evidence; no error in denying defendants' motion for judgment as a matter of law on one plaintiff's claim for loss of consortium as the damages were recoverable under Iowa law and were supported by the evidence; damage award affirmed.
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