Schechter (P) and his companion, Alice Stone, were involved in a motorboat collision. Both were then 14 years old. On a clear and moonlit night, they had left a party at a lakeshore home and, with P operating his father's boat, had begun motoring across the lake. P was taking a straight course at about four miles an hour. They had not gone far, when Alice looked to her right and saw a motorboat some 50 feet distant heading towards them, its bow out of water. The boot, operated by Klanfer (D), struck P's boat near the driver's seat. Alice estimated that D boat was traveling at 30 miles an hour. The nighttime speed limit on the lake was 10 miles an hour. As a result of the collision, P had no memory of the events. He had sustained a fractured skull, fractured arm, fractured jaw, and other physical injuries. He had been comatose for several days. P had amnesia, due to brain damage. D got the verdict. The court had refused to allow a lesser degree of proof because of P’s amnesia. P appealed.

This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

The legal issues presented in this case will be displayed here.

The court's holding and decision will be displayed here.

Legal analysis from Dean's Law Dictionary will be displayed here.