Darrell E. Dixon and Nada Dixon v. Kathy

DURHAM, Justice: This is an appeal from a no cause of action judgment where the jury found the pedestrian (plaintiffs decedent) 60% negligent and the driver of the car that hit and fatally injured him 40% negligent. The accident occurred at about 1:22 a.m. on January 1, 1979, in front of a house where a New Years Eve party was going on. The posted speed limit along the street was 35 miles per hour. The plaintiffs decedent, Dixon, who had been smoking marijuana, left the truck in which he had been sitting with a friend on the far side of the street away from the house and jaywalked across the street. About three feet from the curb, he faltered and was struck by the defendant, Kathy Stewart. She was traveling at approximately 40 miles per hour, had been drinking and, by the time she was tested, had a blood alcohol count of .09%. The defendant said that she saw Dixon crossing the street but when he faltered she was unable to avoid hitting him. On February 2, 1979, the defendant pled guilty to a criminal charge of "negligent homicide."