Opinion ID: 2630862
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Partial Summary Judgment in Favor of Plaintiff

Text: We must also address the propriety of the district court's additional ruling granting partial summary judgment to Brungardt Scott on the factual issue of Hughes' consumption of alcohol or drugs and its effect on his ability to recover workers compensation benefits. Whether a person is operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs is a question of fact. See, e.g., State v. Price, 233 Kan. 706, 710, 664 P.2d 869 (1983). It cannot be determined by a judge as a matter of law unless the record contains evidence to support only one finding. The record before the district court and before us contains only allegations, not evidence, to support Hughes' use of alcohol or drugs and its role in the accident in this case. The fact of such use cannot be reliably inferred from the no contest plea entered in Hughes' criminal case. Patrons Mut. Ins. Ass'n v. Harmon, 240 Kan. 707, 711-12, 732 P.2d 741 (1987) (no contest plea or finding of guilt in criminal action not admission of the act charged, cannot be used as evidence in subsequent civil case). Nor can it be presumed from the allegations in the pleadings before the district court. See Poole, 242 Kan. at 646 (blood alcohol concentration relevant regarding cause of accident, does not give rise to presumption of intoxication); Evans, 31 Kan. App. 2d 211, Syl. ¶ 4 (result of employee's blood alcohol test at time of accident not conclusive presumption of impairment, inadmissible where probable cause otherwise absent). Furthermore, Hughes continued to contest the fact of his alcohol or drug impairment outside the context of his own motion for summary judgment. For purposes of that motion only, he acquiesced in the presumption of such use and its contribution to causing the accident. This was not an admission for all purposes. Finally, the question of Hughes' alcohol or drug use had not been resolved in his workers compensation proceeding. The district judge's premature and unsupported ruling ran the risk of inconsistent outcomes between the two proceedings. Given all of the above, summary judgment on this issue in favor of Brungardt Scott must be reversed. The district court judgment is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Reversed and remanded.