Autenreath v. Southern Mercantile Co.

81 So. 2d 168, 1955 La. App. LEXIS 891
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 20, 1955
DocketNo. 8356
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 81 So. 2d 168 (Autenreath v. Southern Mercantile Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Autenreath v. Southern Mercantile Co., 81 So. 2d 168, 1955 La. App. LEXIS 891 (La. Ct. App. 1955).

Opinion

AYRES, Judge.

Plaintiff, an emancipated minor, instituted this action for damages for permanent personal injuries, pain and suffering sustained by him, for hospital and medical expenses incurred, and for damages done to his motorcycle resulting from a collision of said motorcycle with an International truck of defendants at 3:45 p. m. August 10, 1953, on St. Vincent Avenue in the City of Shreveport, Louisiana, which truck was driven and operated at the time by E. G. Palmer in .the course and scope of his employment and as agent of defendants.

Both vehicles were driven in a northerly direction on St.- Vincent Avenue. The International truck was in the lead. Plaintiff alleges the collision occurred when he attempted to pass defendants’ truck, at which time defendants’ driver attempted a left-hand turn toward the store on the left side of the street. The truck driver was charged with negligence in attempting a left-hand turn without ascertaining that such maneuver could be made in safety and without danger to other traffic and without keeping .a proper lookout or looking to the rear or.giving any signal, of his intention to make such turn, by failing to yield the right of way to plaintiff and in turning directly into the path of his motorcycle, and by operating the truck without a rear view mirror or an electric turn indicator.

To plaintiff’s actioh two defenses are interposed, first, that the driver of the truck was not at the time of the accident acting in the course and scope of his employment but was on a personal mission which had no connection with defendants’ business and that he therefore had deviated from his employment; and,- second, that plaintiff was guilty of contributory negligence constituting the sole proximate cause of the accident in not keeping his motorcycle under control and in attempting to pass the truck without keeping a safe distance to its left and without sounding his horn or giving any warning of his intention to pass, by driving in a zigzag manner from left to right across the street and so close behind the truck as to prevent the driver from seeing the motorcycle.

From a judgment in plaintiff’s favor for $1,233.10, representing $1,000 for pain and suffering, $60 for medical expenses, and $173.10 as damages to the motorcycle, defendants appealed. Plaintiff has answered the appeal, praying that the award be increased to $10,233.10.

Defendants own and operate a grocery business at 115 East 70th Street, Shreveport, Louisiana. E. G. Palmer was their employee, a portion of whose duties was to drive the grocery delivery truck. On the occasion of this accident, Palmer was sent to deliver groceries to a residence at 106 West 78th Street. After making this delivery and while returning to the store, the accident occurred. The return trip was along St. Vincent Avenue, on the left side of which, at municipal number 7002, the grocery and market of L. H. Hicks was located. Palmer’s mother was employed there. It was Palmer’s intention to stop' at this store, and obtain funds from his mother for his own personal use. The truck was in the act of turning to the left when the motorcycle approached from the rear. The truck was yet in the street on which the driver was returning to his employer’s place of business when the accident occurred.

Under similar circumstances, where defendant denied liability on the ground of the employee’s deviation' from his employer’s business, this court in Bonstaff v. Hawkins, 30 So.2d 781, 782, had occasion to say:

“Defendant’s denial of liability is -on the theory that the driver was making the turn from the main highway into a night club for the purpose of securing refreshments and had therefore de[170]*170viated from his employer's business. We concede the principle of law that when an employee turns aside from his employer’s business on a mission of his own the employer is not responsible for his acts of negligence subject, of course, to the rule that responsibility attaches .again; upon re-entry.
“According to defendant’s evidence, the turning into the left lane by the driver was for the purpose of going into the colored saloon or night, club to secure refreshments for himself. There was further testimony that the passenger in the truck, a white man, intended to drive the truck a few hundred feet up the road to a place inviting the patronage of white persons, and to return later for the driver. Regardless of the plans of the driver (who testified that the truck was still on its right side of the road when struck) and the other occupant of the truck, no substantial deviation had, in fact, occurred. When the accident happened the truck was still on the main road along the shortest route back to the home plantation from Colfax where the driver’s duties had that day carried him. Since in fact, no deviation had taken place, the law applicable to deviation and reentry need not be considered in deciding the case. Sufficient for the affirmation of .the judgment is the proof .that the driver was driving along the main rpad on a mission of his employer and within the scope of his employment and that the accident resulted when he made a left turn in the face of oncoming traffic and in violation of Par. (b), Rule 9, section 3, of Act No. 286 of .1938.” LSA-R.S. 32:235.

Under the facts as disclosed by the record in this case, we áre likewise of the opinion that there was no substantial deviation by defendant’s driver from his employer’s business. He was then enroute back to his employer’s place of business. He had not in fact deviated from his employer’s business, when the accident occurred. Such being the fact and no deviation having in fact taken place, the laws applicable to such a contention need not be considered in a determination of the issues of this case.

Our learned brother of the district court was ingenious in the development of the pertinent facts of this case as shown- by his written opinion. We will, therefore, adopt as our own a portion of his reasons for judgment:

“The evidence shows that the driver of defendants’ truck had just previously made a delivery of groceries to one of defendants’ customers and was returning to the store via St. Vincent Avenue in the city of Shreveport, driving north towards 70th Street. Plaintiff was approaching from the rear, and after ascertaining that there was no oncoming traffic, started to pass defendants’ truck at a point about the middle of the block and just south of Hicks’ Store, which’ was located on the west side of St. Vincent Avenue. Defendants’ driver decided to stop at Hicks Grocery, where his mother, worked, and obtain from her some money with which to buy himself some cigarets. Plaintiff turned left into the west lane of the street and had reached approximately the rear of defendants’ truck when .the driver of the truck made a left turn crossing the west lane of the street, causing the accident. Plaintiff testifies that he sounded the horn of his motorcycle twice, and as he was in the act of passing defendants’ truck the truck made the left turn, striking the motorcycle and causing it to overturn and fall on the plaintiff. Plaintiff and Mrs. Johnson, who was on 70th Street and viewed the accident, testified that Mr. Palmer gave no signal of his intention to turn left, while Mr. Palmer states that he gave the proper signal, but never saw plain- ■ tiff ¡until after he began his left-hand turn; that he never heard plaintiff’s signal of his intention to pass; that he [171]

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Bluebook (online)
81 So. 2d 168, 1955 La. App. LEXIS 891, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/autenreath-v-southern-mercantile-co-lactapp-1955.