Fritts v. Mckinne

934 P.2d 371 (1996)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Fritts (P) was seriously injured in a one-vehicle accident. P and his friend Manus had been drinking prior to the accident and the car they were in hit a tree at 70 mph and overturned. P sustained serious injuries and underwent surgery to repair his facial fractures. During that surgery, McKinne (D) was performing a tracheostomy to allow P to breathe during surgery. P began gushing blood, lost consciousness and died three days later. P claimed that D negligently failed to identify and isolate the proper artery. D claimed that the artery was anomalous and that it was in the neck area when it should have been in the chest area. D also countered with a comparative negligence defense in that P was injured while driving drunk or was drunk while in the car with Manus. D was also prepared to introduce that P had substantially diminished life expectancy due to his drug and alcohol use. The trial court denied P's motion to exclude the evidence. The trial court instructed the jury over P's comparative negligence. D got the verdict. P appealed.