Komornik v. Sparks

RODOWSKY, Judge.

The issue here is whether punitive damages are available in this motor vehicle negligence action in which the defendant was intoxicated at the time of the accident. Applying Owens-Illinois v. Zenobia, 325 Md. 420, 601 A.2d 633 (1992), the Circuit Court for Baltimore County ruled that the evidence was insufficient to support a finding of “actual malice.” We agree.

The appellant, Donna Komornik (Komornik), was injured at dusk on December 22, 1989, in a four-vehicle accident caused by the appellee, Gregory Lester Sparks (Sparks), then age thirty. Komornik had been stopped for…