Pruessen v Richard Capobianco, Inc.

Holding The Appellate Division reversed the lower court’s judgment as a matter of law, finding that a rational jury could conclude the defendant failed to exercise reasonable care to avoid a collision with a vehicle already in the intersection. The court also held that the trial court improperly excluded photographs of vehicle damage that were relevant to establishing liability.

The court’s words

there is a rational process by which the jury could have found that even if Capobianco had the right-of-way, the plaintiff's vehicle was already in the intersection

2026 NY Slip Op 06155, at the official text

the Supreme Court improvidently exercised its discretion in precluding photographs depicting the nature and extent of damage to the parties' vehicles after the accident

2026 NY Slip Op 06155, at the official text

the photographs, which showed significant damage to the rear portion of the plaintiff's vehicle and the front portion of the defendants' vehicle, were relevant to whether either party's failure to see that which should have been seen through the proper use of their senses was a proximate cause of the collision

2026 NY Slip Op 06155, at the official text