Earlier this spring, a lawsuit went viral. It involved a snowmobiler, Jeff Smith, who'd been riding home one evening when he crashed head-on into a military Black Hawk helicopter that had landed on an empty airfield, which also was home to a snowmobile trail.
The story went across the internet as Smith had been riding the sled at night and at a high rate of speed when he and the helicopter met face-to-face. And while he argued that the Black Hawk crew had been negligent in its lack of identifying it had landed on the airfield, the vast majority of internet denizens and commenters asked a pretty valid question, i.e. "Why was he riding faster than the conditions allowed?"
Smith, however, had already successfully sued the owner of the airfield and was now going after the military for the cool sum of $9 million. Again, everyone thought he didn't have a leg to stand on. But a judge recently made his ruling on the case and, while he criticized Smith for his part in the accident, he awarded the man $3.3 million.
According to Military.com, U.S. District Judge Mark Mastroianni told the court in his ruling that both the military and Smith were to blame, but that the Black Hawk's crew was "60% responsible" due to them parking the helicopter on the snowmobile trail running through the airfield. "The court finds the government breached its duty of care in failing to take any steps to protect against the obvious risk of a camouflaged helicopter parked on an active snowmobile trail, in a somewhat wooded area, as darkness set,” said Judge Mastroianni adding, “The helicopter and area where it was parked were not illuminated or marked in any way.”
That said, Mastroianni also said Smith executed poor judgment.
During the trial, it came out that Smith not only had two beers the night of the accident, but was also on prescription drugs, and wasn't operating the machine safely, i.e. speeding at night (it was estimated that Smith was riding at 65mph at the time of the crash), riding outside the conditions, as well as wearing tinted goggles which further impair low-light eyesight. That balance of blame, however, likely contributed to the lesser award of $3.3 million, as stated earlier, Smith was seeking $9 million from the military.
As for what happens next, the government has 60 days to either appeal the judge's decision or pay Smith the total sum. It's unclear whether or not the feds will appeal, as when Military.com reached out for comment, they were met with crickets.
However, while I have my own opinion on the case, what this gives me the opportunity to do is remind everyone to ride within conditions and your own capabilities. If you can't see that far ahead of your headlight, or if the only goggles you own are tinted, maybe don't ride at 65mph at night.
Just chill, have fun, and be safe. And if you're riding on an airfield, maybe go slower. Just in case.
