Manuel T. Paulino and Josefina C. Paulino v. Antonio Leon Guerrero Finona, and Jose T. Finona

The sole issue raised by this appeal is whether the trial court properly dismissed, at the close of appellants’ evidence, their action for wrongful death against the driver and the owner of the vehicle in which their son was killed. The parties are in agreement that the dismissal should be treated as a directed verdict. We affirm.

The facts and applicable law are not disputed by the parties. Appellants’ son was killed when the car in which he was a guest left the road and rolled over several times. The accident occurred as the car approached a slight curve in the road that was wet. This condition of the road was not apparent to the driver until after the accident occurred. The car was traveling at a speed of 5 m. p. h. faster than the 45 m. p. h. speed limit. The driver momentarily took his eyes off the road to engage his two passengers in conversation.

The dismissal, or more properly the directed verdict, was proper if there was no substantial evidence to support a finding that the death of appellants’ son resulted from the driver’s wilful misconduct within the meaning of Guam Government Code § 23550, which is derived from California Vehicle Code § 17158. The parties agree that…