Bowen v. City of Huntington

14 S.E. 217, 35 W. Va. 682, 1891 W. Va. LEXIS 99
CourtWest Virginia Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 7, 1891
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 14 S.E. 217 (Bowen v. City of Huntington) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering West Virginia Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bowen v. City of Huntington, 14 S.E. 217, 35 W. Va. 682, 1891 W. Va. LEXIS 99 (W. Va. 1891).

Opinion

English, Judge :

This was an action of trespass on the case brought by Dyke Bowen against the city of Huntington, in the Circuit Court of Cabell county, for the recovery of damages for injuries alleged to have been sustained by the plaintiff" in consequence of an excavation in one of the defendant’s sidewalks, which caused a steep and perpendicular descent and fall of nearly two feet in depth in said sidewalk, within the corporate limits of the defendant. The defendant demurred to the declaration, which demurrer the court overruled, and the defendant pleaded not guilty. The issue was submitted to a jury, who returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff" for one thousand seven hundred and fifty dollars, and thereupon the plaintiff" moved the court to set aside the verdict of the jury, on the ground that the same was contrary to the law and the evidence, which motion was subsequently withdrawn, and thereupon the defendant moved the court to set aside the verdict rendered therein as aforesaid, on the ground that the same was contrary to the law and the [684]*684evidence, which motion was overruled by the court, and judgment was rendered upon said verdict for the sum of one thousand seven hundred and fifty dollars, and costs, and from this judgment the defendant obtained this writ of error.

The facts disclosed by the evidence are in substance as follows: In the fall of 1888, L. D. Sanborn, who resided 'in the city of Huntington, on the corner of Third avenue and Twelfth street, was ordered by the city authorities to pave the sidewalk in front of his lot on Third avenue with brick or stone, the space intended for the sidewalk being fifteen feet wide. About four years previously the board walk had been taken up and a brick and stone walk had been put clown about four or five feet wide, level with the ground, on either side thereof, and in 1888 the city determined to have the entire space of fifteen feet left for a sidewalk paved with brick or stone, and in obedience to said orders the said Sandborn had to cut down about fourteen inches to get the grade established by the city. On the inside next to his lot it was sixteen inches down to the grade, the ground being a little higher at that point, while next to the gutter it was ten inches. After making the excavation he put in two inches of sand, and then laid the brick on top of the sand, reducing the depth of the excavation to twelve inches next to the lot and six inches next to the gutter. Mr. Emmons, who owned the lot adjoining-on the east, did not put his pavement down at the same time, which caused an offset next to the Emmons lot of twelve inches next to the lot and six inches next to the gutter. After Mr. Sanborn finished his pavement he kept a light and guard at this offset for two or three days. He then made a step out of two-inch oak plank,fifteen inches wide and six or seven feet long, about ecjually dividing the ten inches left from his brick pavement to the top of the flag-stone in front of the Emmons lot, which step remained there for three or four days, till the flag-stone on the Em-mons lot was sloped down. "W. 0. James came up there and said the city had ordered him to slant down the walk, and he slanted it down, and took the step away. The flagstone was five or five and a half feet long, and said San-[685]*685born assisted said James in sloping down tlie walk. He took up two flag-stones, and dug tire dirt from under them and again let the stones down. The dirt was flush with the flag-stones. The whole width of the fifteen feet was open to travel, and nothing was done to the sidewalk outside of the flag-stones. The sidewalk east of Sanborn’s on Third avenue was composed of flag-stones about four feet "wide, although the whole space of fifteen feet was open to travel. Supposing the pavement constructed of flag-stones to have been five feet in width, and placed in the center of the space allowed for the sidewalk, this would leave about five feet on each side of said stone pavement which remained unpaved, and foot passengers had the right to travel over any portion of the fifteen feet of space allowed for said sidewalk. According to the evidence of Sanborn, said offset ivas only sloped down the width of the stone pavement, and nothing was done to slope the same between the stone pavement and his lot’; and William Sanborn states that the balance of the fifteen-foot space was left just as it was before, that there were no barriers, but that a light was kept there until the walk was sloped down by W. 0. James; that there was no light there on the 18th of Hovember, 1888, and there was an offset on each side of the flag-stone.

Looking, then, at the circumstances surrounding the accident which, the plaintiff* claims, occasioned the injury complained of, we find that the night was a dark one. Ho barrier or beacon light had been provided by the town to warn plaintiff of the excavation, and the entire space of fifteen feet was open to travel, and constantly used. The evidence does not show that the plai n tiff was acquainted with the fact that the offset existed, or that the excavation had been made, but, on the contrary, he states in his testimony that he had often been along there before. There was no notice to him of this offset, and he did not know they were grading, and the defendant failed to bring home to him any notice of the existence of this offset in the pavement. Under these circumstances, then, if the injuries complained of by the plaintiff resulted from the sudden wrench received in stepping over said offset in the pavement, we can see no [686]*686valid excuse, in tbe light of the rulings of this Court, in reference to injuries received on sidewalks and streets, for the negligence of the defendant in leaving the pavemeut at that point in the condition it was at the time of the accident.

It is true that the act of the corporation in sloping the pavement the width of the flag-stones was a step in the proper direction, and no doubt would have answered all purposes for pedestrains passing in daylight; but pavements must be so constructed and kept as to be safe at all times, day or night.

The question, however, which assumed the most prominence and evoked the most controversy upon the trial of the case was whether the parcqMegia from which the plaintiff was shown to be suffering was the result of the accident occasioned by the defect in the sidewalk, or was a consequence induced by the disease from which he was and had been suffering. In order to allow the jury to have a fair opportunity of determining properly to which of these causes his condition was referable, it became necessary to introduce medical men, and examine them as experts. The plaintiff’ was suffering from paralysis of the lower limbs, which, the defence contended, was the result of syphilis in its tertiary form, and the plaintiff attributed it to the injury received by reason of the defect in the pavement. Several respectable physicians proved that they had treated the plaintiff for syphilis, and he had improved temporarily under their treatment, and it also clearly appeared that he stepped over the offset in the pavement.

The first error assigned by the plaintiff in error is that the hypothetical question propounded by the plaintiff’ to Dr. I). W. Dabney, which was objected to by the plaintiff’ in error, did not correctly detail the evidence either as to the accident or the disease. Said question is set forth in bill of exceptions No. 1, and reads as follows :

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Bluebook (online)
14 S.E. 217, 35 W. Va. 682, 1891 W. Va. LEXIS 99, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bowen-v-city-of-huntington-wva-1891.