Court: |
Supreme Court of Utah |
|
Facts: |
Defendant was trucking soldiers around, and fell asleep at the wheel,
eventually tunning over a child on the sidewalk. |
|
Posture: |
Appeal from a verdict of involuntary manslaughter. |
|
Issue: |
Was the evidence sufficient to show negligence? (i.e., should the charge
have been dismissed, rather than being sent to the jury, because the
state failed to show this element?) |
|
Holding: |
Affirmed |
|
Rule: |
You're not responsible for what you do when you are asleep, but you
are responsible for where and ehwn you let yourself fall asleep. |
|
Reasoning: |
You can't go to sleep while driving without being negligent. |
|
Dicta: |
Not just one, but two concurring opinions! Just falling asleep while
driving doesn't by itself overcome the presumption of innocence, or
establish negligence sufficiently for the jury. Plus, this was a
sleep-inducing truck. |