There is an interesting personal injury case pending in New Jersey that highlights an interesting question about responsible use of SMS technology. A guy allegedly hit a motorcycle, severely injuring its two riders, because he was distracted by a text his girlfriend had sent. The motorcycle riders sued the girlfriend who sent the text.
Even the plaintiffs’ lawyer admits that most people would not be willing to pin responsibility on someone who was not present to cause an accident and injury. But because of the unique facts, namely, that she apparently knew her boyfriend was driving, she became “electronically present” with him in the vehicle.
One of the things the plaintiffs will have to show is that the text proximately caused the accident. In New Jersey, the jury (if the case gets that far) will be asked to find whether the plaintiffs’ injuries are so connected with the negligent actions of the girlfriend that it is reasonable to hold her responsible. Answering that will require the jury to examine whether it was foreseeable that her sending the text would cause that wreck.
Though personally I would be of the opinion to place fault on the negligent driver who saw fit to take his eyes from the road to answer. Since his girlfriend is only human and by no means omnipresent, the blame should remain on the boyfriend who could have used his better judgment to simply wait at least till a red light to read the message. The which could have prevented the injury of the motorcyclists, the driver’s car would not be impounded, and he’d probably still have the girlfriend who was most likely less than amused to find herself “at fault.”