Opinion ID: 2262524
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: second collision

Text: Late that same afternoon, shortly before 5:25 P.M., Mrs. George and her passenger were travelling in the northbound travel lane in the vicinity of Mile 52 of the Maine Turnpike. The weather and road conditions were the same as had been found earlier in the vicinity of Mile 33 albeit perhaps worse, and darkness had fallen. Mrs. George was driving slowlytraffic was passing to her left. A horn sounded and a bus passed. Shortly thereafter Mrs. George's Chrysler was struck in the left rear by a Mercury Comet operated by Christopher Bonnet which had overtaken her. Defendant Bonnet, just prior to approaching the vicinity of Mile 52 on his way to Colby College at Waterville, had been following the lights of a large truck or bus. By this time visibility had been reduced to two car lengths. The large vehicle began to pull away from his Mercury until finally the lights disappeared altogether. A short time later Defendant Bonnet, travelling between 20 and 30 miles per hour, saw Mrs. George's Chrysler about fifteen feet ahead and to the right of his car. Mr. Bonnet said that a plow which had recently preceded him had plowed a single strip in the center of the highway which was more free of snow than the rest of the road and that Mrs. George's car was to the right of and outside of this strip. Bonnet attempted to move toward the left but struck the Chrysler in the left rear with the right front of his Mercury Comet. On March 3, 1966 in the Trial Justice Court in Scarborough, Bonnet pleaded guilty to a charge of following too closely as a result of this collision, but he testified that he entered the plea of guilty only under duress.