09/20/95 Sara Ryan V. Gold Cross Services

We granted an interlocutory appeal from a Third District Court ruling upholding the constitutionality of Utah Code Ann. § 41-6-186 and denying defendants' motion to admit at trial evidence of plaintiff's nonuse of an available safety belt. Gold Cross Services, Inc., dba Gold Cross Ambulance, and William J. Slusher (collectively "Gold Cross") argue that the statute acts as a rule of evidence and is therefore a legislative intrusion on the rule-making powers reserved to the Supreme Court under the Utah Constitution. In addition, Gold Cross asserts that the statute acts to create an unreasonable classification of tort defendants in violation of the uniform operation of laws provision contained in the Utah Constitution. We reject these arguments and affirm the trial court.