In a recent Connecticut Superior Court case, Judge Alfred J. Jennings rejected a plaintiff’s request for permission to seek the defendant’s cell phone records for the one hour prior to a “relatively high speed rear end collision”.

Connecticut rules of practice only allow for a standard set of discovery (a request for information) in automobile crash cases.  Cell phone records are not included in the standard set of discovery.  The plaintiff in the case of Girardi v. Kreutter sought permission to obtain the defendant’s cell phone records.  The court denied the plaintiff’s request and held that the plaintiff failed to prove there was sufficient grounds to support the request for the cell phone records.

The court did not say that it would be impossible to obtain cell phone records in any automobile crash case and left open the possibility that plaintiffs in other cases could obtain those records if it could provide an adequate reason for their production.  With the increased use of cell phones and text messaging devices, it is highly likely that cell phone records will provide relevant information in automobile and trucking crash cases.

Contact Timothy O’Keefe today at 860-246-2700.