Allstate Insurance v. United States

973 F. Supp. 759, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11520, 1997 WL 440998
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Tennessee
DecidedMay 7, 1997
DocketNo. 3:94-0932
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 973 F. Supp. 759 (Allstate Insurance v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Allstate Insurance v. United States, 973 F. Supp. 759, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11520, 1997 WL 440998 (M.D. Tenn. 1997).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

ECHOLS, District Judge.

Plaintiffs, Allstate Insurance Company (“Allstate”) and Salli Welker, brought this action under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. §§ 1346(b), 2671, et seq., alleging that Defendant’s employee, United States postal worker Grover Plymale, negligently caused an accident between Plaintiff Welker’s automobile and Plymale’s postal truck. Plaintiffs sue to recover damages for the cost of repairing Plaintiff Welker’s ear.

Findings of Fact

Plaintiffs brought this suit, contending that Mr. Plymale, while acting within the scope of his employment, negligently caused an automobile accident between his postal truck and Plaintiff Welker’s car, which at the time was being driven by Ms. Welker’s son, Frank Bradford (“Brad”) Welker. Defendant maintains that the accident was wholly caused by Brad Welker’s negligent driving, and that Mr. Plymale was not at fault. Defendant therefore contends that, under Tennessee’s comparative negligence system, McIntyre v. Balentine, 833 S.W.2d 52 (Tenn.1992), Plaintiffs are not entitled to recovery.

The accident in question occurred on May 5, 1992, at the intersection of Hawkins Road and Morgan Road in Clarksville, Tennessee. The only vehicles involved were Mr. Ply-male’s postal truck and Ms. Welker’s Chevrolet Camaro. Brad Welker was driving the Camaro at the time of the crash, with his girlfriend, Ashley Hanson, in the front passenger seat. Mr. Welker testified that, at the time of the crash, he was employed at Clarksville Memorial Hospital. He resided with his parents approximately one block from the accident site. Once or twice a week, Mr. Welker would drive home during his lunch break to eat lunch with his parents. The drive took approximately ten minutes. At trial, Mr. Welker testified that he was allowed one hour for lunch; upon cross-examination, however, he admitted that he had testified by deposition that he was permitted only a 45-minute break. He explained at trial that he could take hour-long breaks if he “clocked out” before leaving the hospital.

On the day in question, Mr. Welker left work at about 11 a.m. to pick up Ms. Hanson to go with him to his parents’ home to eat. Mr. Welker picked up Ms. Hanson at her residence, then proceeded south on Hawkins Road. He stated that he was driving at about 35-40 miles per hour, although he admitted that he knew at the time that the posted speed limit on Hawkins was 30 miles per hour. He testified that at the time he was driving on Hawkins it had just started raining, making the road wet. Ms. Hanson testified that to the best of her recollection the weather was “sunny and warm.” She corroborated Mr. Welker’s testimony that he was driving between 35 and 40 miles per hour.

The testimony indicated that, while Mr. Welker was en route to his parents’ home, Mr. Plymale, a federal postal worker, was in the midst of his mail delivery route. Mr. Plymale testified that he drove a half-ton Long-Life Vehicle (“LLV’), which was constructed with the driver’s seat on the right side to facilitate mail delivery along the street. He testified that he had driven the same route nearly every day for many years. His route called for him, in part, to deliver mail on a portion of Hawkins heading north, make a left turn onto Morgan, travel a very short distance down Morgan, then make, a U-turn. After making the U-turn, Mr. Plymale would make a right-hand turn onto Hawkins, heading south. Mr. Plymale testified that at the time of the accident it was raining, and that the roads were probably a bit slick. He stated that he was facing north on Hawkins, and was in the process of turning left onto Morgan to make the 'wide U-turn. He testified that he was wearing his seat belt, and that his left-turn signal'was on. He checked north and south on Hawkins, and also checked Morgan for oncoming traffic. Seeing no cars approaching from any direction, he began the left-hand turn onto Morgan Road. Mr. Plymale testified that he did not [761]*761remember anything from that time until he awoke in the ambulance.

The evidence showed that, approximately 376 feet north of the intersection of Hawkins and Morgan, Hawkins bends to the east, cutting off the view of oncoming traffic from either direction. The point at which the road bends sits at the crest of a long hill which starts south of the Hawkins-Morgan intersection. The hill tapers off somewhat at the point the roads intersect, then runs more steeply uphill to the north of the intersection. Thus, at the time of the accident, Mr. Welker was heading downhill on Hawkins, while Mr. Plymale was turning in an uphill direction.

On direct examination, Mr. Welker testified that he saw the LLV immediately after he rounded the bend on Hawkins. On cross-examination, however, he changed his testimony, indicating that he did not see the truck until he was much closer to the intersection. Additionally, Mr. Welker stated on direct examination that, at the time he rounded the curve, he saw that the truck had already begun its left-hand turn onto Morgan from Hawkins. When the Court asked him to clarify his answer, Mr. Welker again testified that the truck was already in the process of commencing its turn when he first noticed it. On cross-examination, however, Mr. Welker stated that the LLV did not begin its turn until 30-45 seconds after he first saw it. Upon further questioning, Mr. Welker testified that he was approximately 200-300 feet from the truck when it started turning.

Ms. Hanson’s version of the movements of the LLV is entirely different from Mr. Welker’s. She testified that, at the time she first noticed the truck, it was in the northbound lane of Hawkins, but facing south. She stated that, as they approached, the truck began to make a U-turn in the middle of the road. Ms. Hanson also testified, however, that the Camaro was only about ten or fifteen feet from the truck when she first saw it. She then admitted that it could have been as long as ten seconds from the time she saw the truck until the collision occurred.

The Court took judicial notice of the fact that there are 5,280 feet in one mile. Thus, at a speed of 35 miles per hour, it would take a car 7.52 seconds to travel the 376 feet from the point where Mr. Welker first saw the LLV to the Hawkins-Morgan intersection. At 40 miles per hour, it would take the car 6.58 seconds to travel that distance.

. Mr. Welker testified that once he realized that he was about to hit the LLV, he slammed on the brakes. He stated that he did not apply the brakes until “real near the impact” of the two vehicles because he “had no idea [Mr. Plymale] was going to [turn].” Mr. Welker stated that his brakes locked, causing the Camaro to veer to the right. He later testified that he purposefully steered the car to the right in an attempt to circumvent the truck. He stated that he did not swerve to the left because he wanted to avoid a head-on collision with oncoming traffic in the northbound lane.

The evidence indicated that the front of the Camaro collided with the right front door of the LLV. The impact took place just after the LLV finished crossing the southbound lane of Hawkins onto Morgan. The force of the crash sent the LLV spinning across Hawkins. Mr. Plymale was thrown out of the LLV’s right-hand driver’s side door and onto the hood of the Camaro. He landed in the grass on the southwest corner of the intersection.

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Bluebook (online)
973 F. Supp. 759, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11520, 1997 WL 440998, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/allstate-insurance-v-united-states-tnmd-1997.