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Pryor v. Hoskins9/11/2002
said that he did not believe there was much fog that night because if so, he would have remembered it. Ward admitted that there was dirt on the trailer's rear reflectors and taillights. Further, Ward acknowledged that the natural flow of traffic on the street led drivers into the lane where he parked because of the slight curve, and that drivers had to make an effort to veer leftward to avoid any parked vehicle. Finally, Ward conceded that parking was prohibited along that side of the street until two houses south of his, but he opined that because it "was legal to park" in front of his house, "no extra precautions were necessary." (Tr. 666).
Hoskins' expert witness, Willard Alroth, a consulting traffic engineer, testified that he did not believe the left rear reflector was on the trailer at the time of the collision because the adjacent taillight lenses - encased in the same "indentation in the back frame structure" - were undamaged. (Tr. 348). Alroth also noted that because the trailer was parked beside a street light, "the entire back of the truck" was "in a shadow because none of the light that would be emanating from that street lamp would be falling on the back of the truck." (Tr. 352). Further, Alroth believed that the amount of dirt on the light fixtures at the rear of the trailer made it "possible that they could not have been seen." (Tr. 346).
At the conclusion of all evidence, the truckers moved for judgment on the evidence. The trial court denied the motion. Subsequently, the trial court gave the jury two verdict forms - one to indicate a verdict for Hoskins and one to indicate a verdict for the truckers. The jury returned a verdict for Hoskins, finding she was 35% at fault, the truckers were 65% at fault, and her damages totaled $435,869.46.
1. Peremptory Challenge
When the first six potential jurors were questioned during voir dire, Hoskins' counsel asked whether " nyone ever had any bad experience with a truck driver." (Tr. 32). Deborah Ivy responded, "We had one (1) who almost run us off the road when we were going to take our daughter to college in North Carolina in the Virginia area, and another one (1) (inaudible) on the way to Indianapolis that almost ran the car literally off the road. (inaudible) we had to go around." (Tr. 33). Hoskins' counsel then asked Ivy whether she had "any general good feeling, bad feeling, about truck drivers," to which Ivy responded, "They're not my favorite." Four questions later, Hoskins' counsel asked whether any of the six had a "problem with sitting as a juror for [Hoskins]?" Tr. 34. Ivy answered, "She looks familiar to me. I'm not sure - does she have children? I think her children attend my church," and she elaborated that she might have seen Hoskins at her church "maybe three (3) or four (4) years ago." Id. Hoskins' counsel then asked Ivy whether Ivy had talked to Hoskins' daughters, and Ivy answered, "Not recently. Just passed them and said hi." (Tr. 35). When Ivy was asked for more information about the daughters, she said, "They're in their thirties . . . I believe" and that she did not "know them that well because they didn't stay very long and they sang in the choir." Id. Finally, Hoskins' counsel asked Ivy whether "even though you mentioned earlier that truck drivers aren't your favorite people, do you still think you could sit and hear this case with an open mind today?" (Tr. 35). Ivy answered, "Sure." Id.
Subsequently, the truckers' counsel asked whether Ivy was "pretty sure" that she knew two of Hoskins' daughters, to which Ivy responded, "Yes." (Tr. 56). Ivy also affirmed that she recognized the name Hoskins. When asked further about Hoskins' daughters, Ivy said, "They were real quiet. The
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