Rong Yao Zhou, et al., Appellants v. Jennifer Mall Restaurant, Inc., Appellee, 534 A.2d 1268

Summary

The victims were seriously injured when they were struck by a car driven by a drunk driver who was returning from the restaurant. The victims alleged that the drunk driver had been served alcohol by the restaurant after he had become intoxicated and his intoxication was apparent in violation of D.C. Code § 25-121(b) (1981). The trial court granted the restaurant's motion for judgment on the pleadings for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. On appeal, the court vacated and remanded for trial. Violation of § 25-121(b), which was designed to protect the public safety, supplied sufficient evidence on which to rest a claim for liability in tort. At trial, the victims would be required to show that that the statute had been violated and the restaurant was entitled to present evidence as to whether the violation was excusable. The victims would also be required to show that the violation was the proximate cause of their injuries and the jury could not find that the ...