Opinion ID: 1439464
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: sufficiency of the evidence

Text: The contention which Seaton presented as a sufficiency of the evidence argument appears instead to be an assertion that any error we might find in the trial proceedings could not be deemed harmless. Seaton does not argue the trial evidence, in itself, was insufficient to support a finding Riekens was the sole negligent party. Rather, she contends, given the particular balance between favorable and unfavorable evidence, such a finding could not have occurred in the absence of any one of the designated errors. Notwithstanding the fact that we have found no errors in the proceedings below, Seaton's claims regarding the balance of evidence in this case simply do not survive even casual scrutiny within our normal rules of appellate review on sufficiency contentions after jury verdict. [W]e assume the evidence in favor of the successful party to be true, leaving out of consideration entirely the evidence in conflict, and assigning every favorable inference to the evidence of the successful party that can be reasonably and fairly drawn from it. In addition, when reviewing a jury verdict, we leave to the jury the duty of ascertaining the facts, reconciling conflicts therein and drawing its own inferences if more than one inference is permissible. Also, when the facts permit the drawing of more than one inference, then it is for the jury to choose which one will be utilized and, if supported by substantial evidence, the jury's choice will be held by us to be conclusive. Reese v. Dow Chemical Co., 728 P.2d 1118, 1120 (Wyo. 1986) (quoting Crown Cork & Seal Co., Inc. v. Admiral Beverage Corp., 638 P.2d 1272, 1274-75 (Wyo. 1982)). See also Brittain v. Booth, 601 P.2d 532 (Wyo. 1979). Even if the jury had been convinced the gravel had accumulated at the scene of the accident due to the breach of some duty by Highway Department employees for a sweeping program on median areas, there remained the strong evidence that Riekens alone had caused the accident and the resulting injuries to Seaton. It is clear Riekens had been drinking on the evening of the accident and exhibited difficulty in operating the borrowed motorcycle. As he approached a gentle curve to the left on South Greeley Highway at nearly sixty miles per hour, he was in the process of negotiating a change from the left hand to the right hand lane of that highway. He turned to look over his right shoulder for his companions. Facing forward again, he found he had crossed both travel lanes of the highway and a sufficient portion of the turn lane for the Interstate 80 entrance ramp to bring him in contact with some gravel off the travel lane for this road system at a point only slightly more than three feet from the curb he eventually struck. It is not unrealistic for the jury to have perceived that Riekens was, during this time, not in control of the motorcycle which he was driving, after drinking, at night and at an excessive speed. The gravel's contribution, if any, to his continued failure to control the vehicle once he had overshot the curve to cross the turn lane and move into the median was to a great extent debateable. Debated it was, and ably so. Seaton lost the debate by jury decision. The decision of the trial court is affirmed in all respects.