A truck driver is hired on as an employee and is tasked with driving 1000 pounds of grain from California to New York. There is one direct route that the employee is instructed to take. The employee decides to go a different route because their favorite haircutter is on the different route. When exiting for the hair salon the truck driver runs over a elderly man.
Who is liable for the man's death? The company or the driver? Why? Be sure to use references from the text to support your response.
What if the truck driver was considered an independent contractor? Will that change anything? Why?