Cristyn Cordova was driving on busy Colorado Boulevard in Los Angeles, when another car veered into her lane. Cristyn was forced off the road into the median, where she struck a large magnolia tree. She and three of her passengers died. Cristyn’s family sued the other driver, but they also sued the city and claimed that putting a large tree close by in the median of a busy highway was dangerous and partially caused the four deaths. The city responded that there was nothing wrong with the tree and that the only person at fault was the other driver. The California Supreme Court said that Cristyn’s family might have a point. According to the court, a city has a legal duty to design roadways in ways that are safe. taking into account the fact that accidents happen and that innocent drivers might have to take emergency maneuvers if someone else does something dangerous. Of course, that doesn’t mean a city can’t install hard objects such as lightposts, signs, or trees near a road. However, Cristyn’s family should be allowed to try to prove in court that planting such large trees in a median so close to a busy highway was unreasonable under all circumstances.