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Solorzano v. Bristow9/16/2004
ow down, Defendant stated that she was using the force of the wind to hold the door shut and was concerned that if she hit the brake, the door would open. The road at this point was straight and there was no other traffic.
Defendant moved for summary judgment, arguing that Garrett had committed suicide and that she had no duty to prevent a suicide. Defendant presented Garrett's death certificate and the report of the Office of the Medical Investigator as evidence of the suicide. The trial court granted summary judgment finding:
1. There is no genuine issue as to whether Nelda Sue Garrett committed suicide when she stepped out of the van being driven by Defendant.
2. There is no duty in law to prevent a suicide outside of a limited number of exceptions that do not apply to this case.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Summary judgment is appropriate where there are no genuine issues of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. See Self v. United Parcel Serv., Inc., 1998-NMSC-046, 6, 126 N.M. 396, 970 P.2d 582. We consider the facts in the light most "favorable to support a trial on the issues because the purpose of summary judgment is not to preclude a trial on the merits if a triable issue of fact exists." Madsen v. Scott, 1999-NMSC-042, 7, 128 N.M. 255, 992 P.2d 268 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). " ummary judgment is not appropriate when the facts before the court are insufficiently developed or where further factual resolution is essential for determination of the central legal issues involved." Brown v. Taylor, 120 N.M. 302, 307, 901 P.2d 720, 725 (1995) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). We review a grant of summary judgment de novo. Self, 1998-NMSC-046, 6.
DISCUSSION
This case raises several issues: (1) What is the legal standard for determining when a death is a suicide in New Mexico? (2) Is there a question of material fact as to whether Garrett committed suicide? (3) Did Defendant owe a duty of reasonable care to her passenger, under these circumstances? (4) And, if so, are there genuine issues of fact as to whether she breached that duty?
I. Suicide
The district court determined there was no question of fact that Garrett committed suicide. It is not possible to tell from the record what definition or standard the court applied. Defendant's briefing in this Court and below does not attempt to devise a definition for suicide. Rather, Defendant simply assumes that Garrett's death constituted suicide. If the district court adopted Defendant's approach, it erred as we shall explain. In any event, we hold that there are questions of fact precluding summary judgment on the issue.
New Mexico has not had occasion in the civil personal injury arena to articulate a standard for determining when a death may be labeled a suicide. We have no statutory definition, and the cases that do mention suicide come from different legal settings. For example, in the workers' compensation setting, there is a presumption against suicide. Suicide is an affirmative defense which defendants must prove. Neel v. State Distribs., Inc., 105 N.M. 359, 361, 732 P.2d 1382, 1384 (Ct. App. 1986). "This presumption, though not conclusive, is sufficient unless rebutted by substantial evidence, to support an award for compensation." Medina v. N.M. Consol. Mining Co., 51 N.M. 493, 496, 188 P.2d 343, 345 (1947) (suggesting the kind of evidence necessary to rebut the presumption, including "domestic trouble" and "signs of worry"). In the life insurance contract setting, the language of the policy controls the definition of suicide. Typically, life ins
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