Allen v. Compton

461 S.W.2d 143, 1970 Tex. App. LEXIS 2041
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 4, 1970
Docket17516
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 461 S.W.2d 143 (Allen v. Compton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Allen v. Compton, 461 S.W.2d 143, 1970 Tex. App. LEXIS 2041 (Tex. Ct. App. 1970).

Opinion

DIXON, Chief Justice.

This is a rear end collision case involving three automobiles. The automobile of appellant Ruth Arden Allen was in front, the car of appellee Evelyn Rogers was in the middle and the car of appellee James C. Compton was in the rear.

Appellant Ruth Arden Allen had brought her car to a stop in a line of automobiles facing a red traffic light. Appellee Compton’s car collided with the rear of the middle car, that of Evelyn Rogers, and said middle car was knocked into the rear of the car of appellant Ruth Arden Allen. Appellant Ruth Arden Allen joined by her husband John Ray Allen sued both appel-lees for damages.

The trial court sustained a motion for instructed verdict in favor of Evelyn Rogers, operator of the middle car.

Twenty-six special issues were submitted to a jury. Among the jury’s answers, material to this appeal, were the following: (1) appellee Compton failed to keep a proper lookout, (2) which was a proximate cause of the collision; (23) appellant (Mrs. Allen) sustained personal injuries as a proximate result of the negligence of ap-pellee Compton, (24) but as to what sum of money would fairly and reasonably compensate Mrs. Allen for her injuries (including physical pain and suffering, men *145 tal anguish, loss of earnings) the jury answered “NONE”; (25) as reasonable and necessary doctors’ and medical bills, past and in the future, the jury answered $394; and (26) as reasonable and necessary cost of repairing Mrs. Allen’s automobile the jury answered $50.72.

Appellants filed a motion asking the court to disregard the jury’s answer to Special Issue No. 24 and to grant a new trial. This motion was overruled.

Appellee Compton filed a motion for judgment on the verdict. This motion was sustained and judgment was rendered in favor of appellants and against Compton for $444.72.

In six points of error appellants assert that the trial court erred (1) in overruling appellants’ motion to disregard the jury’s answer to Special Issue No. 24 because said answer was contrary to all the evidence and (2) in overruling appellants’ motion for new trial since the jury’s answer of “none” as to Special Issue No. 24 was against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence; (3) in refusing to grant a new trial since the damages awarded for property damage and medical expenses only are manifestly wrong and too small and were not equitable to appellants; (4) the damages awarded by the jury and the judgment based thereon are not supported by any evidence; (5) in excluding Mrs. Allen’s testimony on redirect examination to the effect that she failed to visit the doctor for almost a year because she could not afford the expense of such additional visits, and that she did not visit the doctor on November 26, 1969 to talk about the litigation; and (6) in granting the motion for instructed verdict of appellee Rogers.

We agree with appellants that the jury’s answer of “None” to Special Issue No. 24 is so contrary to the overwhelming weight and preponderance of the evidence as to be manifestly wrong. This was the issue which inquired what sum of money if any would fairly and reasonably corn-pensate Mrs. Allen for the injuries sustained by her proximately caused by the negligence of appellee Compton, to which the jury answered “None”.

Mrs. Allen testified that following the accident she suffered from a painful stiffness in her neck, and pain and weakness in her arms and shoulders and from headaches. She testified that she had not had any such trouble before the collision. This painful condition continued in varying degrees of intensity from a day or two following the collision until the day of the trial. Sometimes the pain would subside, but later the condition would worsen. As a result she was unable to continue her employment at the Swiss Avenue Diagnostic Laboratories, or to continue her part time work as a swimming instructor and lifeguard for the Red Cross. Since the accident she has tried to hold several jobs, chiefly part time, including the selling of Avon and Mary Kay products. Consequently her income has decreased from nearly $6,000 per year to less than $2,500 in 1969. Mrs. Allen further testified that she is no longer able to perform most of her household duties, which have to be performed by her husband and two daughters.

Mrs. Allen testified that some years prior to the accident she had developed a mild bone-joint disease in her knees, but that it was not serious and never interfered with her work or her duties as a swimming instructor.

Mrs. Allen’s husband John Ray Allen also testified and he corroborated his wife’s testimony in all material particulars.

Of course Mrs. Allen and her husband are interested parties, so their testimony standing alone could raise no more than a fact issue. But their testimony finds considerable corroboration from the testimony of Dr. Russ B. Graham.

Dr. Graham treated Mrs. Allen on eight different occasions between July 16, 1968 and December 11, 1968. He caused several *146 sets of x-rays to be made. He diagnosed her injury as acute sprain and strain of the cervical spine. He testified that acute sprain and strain of the cervical spinewill cause pain. He also- testified that he could feel the muscle spasm in Mrs. Allen’s neck. He gave her two injections in her shoulders. He prescribed medication to ease the pain and caused Mrs. Allen to purchase and use a traction apparatus. He also sent her to Baylor Hospital for physical therapy treatments. At one time the doctor recommended hospitalization but Mrs. Allen said she could not afford to go. Her medical and doctor bills for out-patient and office visits amounted to $363.46.

Dr. Graham, following his treatment of Mrs. Allen on December 11, 1968 did not see her again until November 26, 1969, when she showed improvement. However his opinion was that it would be another six months before she would be fully recovered.

We think the jury’s answer of “None” to Special Issue No. 24 is so contrary to the overwhelming weight and preponderance of the evidence as to be manifestly wrong. A new trial should have been granted appellants. Rule 328, Vernon’s Texas Rules of Civil Procedure; Downing v. Uniroyal, Inc., 451 S.W.2d 279, 283 (Tex.Civ.App., Dallas 1970, no writ); Gallegos v. Clegg, 417 S.W.2d 347 (Tex.Civ.App., Corpus Christi 1967, writ ref’d n. r. e); Taylor v. Head, 414 S.W.2d 542 (Tex.Civ.App., Texarkana 1967, writ ref’d n. r. e.); Bolen v. Timmons, 407 S.W.2d 947 (Tex.Civ.App., Amarillo 1966, no writ); Edmondson v. Keller, 401 S.W.2d 718 (Tex.Civ.App., Austin 1966, no writ); Lowery v. Berry, 153 Tex. 411, 269 S.W.2d 795 (1954).

We are not prepared to say that the answer to Special Issue No. 24 was contrary to all the evidence, or that the damages awarded by the jury and the judgment based thereon are not supported by any

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Bluebook (online)
461 S.W.2d 143, 1970 Tex. App. LEXIS 2041, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/allen-v-compton-texapp-1970.