Brown v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance

183 So. 2d 313, 248 La. 943, 1966 La. LEXIS 2426
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedFebruary 23, 1966
DocketNo. 47934
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 183 So. 2d 313 (Brown v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brown v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance, 183 So. 2d 313, 248 La. 943, 1966 La. LEXIS 2426 (La. 1966).

Opinion

HAMLIN, Justice:

The instant suit and the case of Ellis (Raggette) v. Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company, et al., La., 183 So.2d 321, arising out of the same head-on automobile collision, were consolidated for trial in the district court and for argument in the Court of Appeal; separate judgments were rendered in each case. The Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, affirmed the judgments of the trial court which rejected the demands of plaintiffs. 177 So.2d 597; 177 So.2d 603. We directed Certiorari to the Court of Appeal (Art. VII, Sec. 11, La. Const, of 1921), in order that we might review the matters. 248 La. 436, 179 So.2d 275. One opinion with separate judgments will be rendered herein.

The trial court and the Court of Appeal found that plaintiffs in both suits failed to prove their claims to a legal certainty by a reasonable preponderance of the evidence. The principal error assigned to the judgments of the Court of Appeal by relators is [945]*945that it failed to place the burden of exculpation of negligence upon the defendants. A determination as to whether negligence can be attributed to both drivers herein or only to one or to neither is our primary concern.

The Court of Appeal correctly and succinctly stated the facts as follows:

“The accident occurred at night on December 25, 1960, at approximately 7:30 P.M. The pickup truck [1953] was being driven by Willie Brown in an easterly direction [on Louisiana Highway 674 near New Iberia, Louisiana] and the Chevrolet automobile [1957] was being driven westwardly by Wilfred Raggette. There were patches of rather heavy fog in the area where the accident occurred. The vehicles collided head-on, causing severe personal injuries. There was heavy damage to the left front of both vehicles. It is apparent that one of the vehicles invaded the proper lane of travel of the other, or that both vehicles partially crossed the center dividing line of the highway. There was no physical evidence by which the point of collision could be fixed as to its location on the highway. The automobile came to rest on the shoulder and partially in the ditch on the north side of the highway, and the pickup truck came to rest in the south lane, facing west, having been turned completely around from the direction in which it was proceeding.
“Seated in the cab of the pickup truck were plaintiffs Willie Brown, Mrs. Brown, Justina Johnson Alexander, and Joseph Ben, with his small minor daughter in his lap.”

Riding with Wilfred Raggette were lisia Ellis (now his wife), Séptima Boutte, Melba Verdun and Alfred Raggette.

The instant suit for damages was brought by Willie Brown and wife, Mary Lee Comeaux Brown, Joseph Ben, and Justina Johnson Alexander, for herself individually and on behalf of her minor daughter, Mabel Alexander. Named as defendants were Wilfred E. Raggette and Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company (hereinafter referred to as Southern Farm), insurer of the car driven by Wilfred Raggette and insured in the name of Alton Raggette, and also the insurer of a farm truck owned by Joseph Raggette, father of Wilfred Raggette. Plaintiffs prayed for an in solido judgment against Wilfred E. Raggette and Southern Farm on both Raggette policies.

Plaintiffs alleged that the collision was caused solely and proximately by the gross and wanton carelessness, recklessness, lack of skill, ineptitude, and disregard of the rights of others shown by Wilfred Raggette. One particular allegation of negligence was that he failed to drive his vehicle on his own proper side of the road and entered the East bound traffic lane occupied by Willie Brown’s vehicle.

[947]*947’ Southern Farm moved for summary judgment. The trial court denied the motion oh the ground 'that the depositions and affidavits submitted by the parties showed that there were issues of material facts to be decided by the court. In its reasons- for denying the motion, the court stated that Southern Farm sought to exonerate itself from liability on the ground of violation of the cooperation clauses.of the policies. In its reasons for judgments on trial of the merits, the court stated that it was unnecessary for it to consider whether Wilfred and lisia Raggette breached the cooperation clauses of the policies. The Court of Appeal did not mention the alleged violation of the cooperation clauses.

Defendants denied the allegations of plaintiffs’ petition. They charged' Willie Brown with gross negligence, recklessness, and want of care. They also averred that the passengers in Brown’s truck were guilty of gross negligence which was a contributing proximate cause of the accident.- Among the averments of negligence attributed to Brown was one which charged that he drove his vehicle in a fog onto the wrong side of the highway, without signal or warning, directly in the. path of the oncoming Raggette car.

In the case of Ellis (Raggette) plaintiffs-prayed for an. in solido judgment against Willie Brown and Southern Farm. Plaintiffs alleged that both Willie Brown and Wilfred E. Raggette were guilty of negligence which constituted the proximate cause of the injuries sustained by Hsia Ellis Raggette.1 (On motion of his counsel, the claim-of Wilfred Raggette was later dismissed with prejudice.)

■ Southern Farm filed a motion for summary judgment, which was denied for the-same reasons set forth above. It answered plaintiffs’ petition, averring that Wilfred Raggette was proceeding on Louisiana Highway 674 in his own proper right hand [949]*949lane of traffic at a safe and prudent speed. It further averred that the accident complained of was caused, solely and proximately, by the gross negligence and recklessness of Willie Blown.

During trial on the merits, the testimony of numerous witnesses was elicited. This testimony, in our opinion, is neither so conflicting nor impossible that it cannot be analyzed and rationalized so as to make the findings we will set forth hereinafter.

Willie Brown, forty-four years old at the time of trial, testified that just prior to the accident, his windshield, windshield wipers, brakes and lights were good, and that he had taillights. He stated that just before Christmas, 1960, he had trouble with one light but corrected it by buying a whole sealed beam; that with his wife’s help he checked the lights after the replacement and they were both burning.

Brown stated that on Christmas Day, 1960, he had dinner at his house with his wife, Joseph Ben, Justina Johnson Alexander, and their little girl Mabel; that soda pop and one little bottle of sweet wine (given to him by Mrs. Norton, his employer’s wife) was served; that after dinner, the ■group sat around, played music, and then ■around six o’clock decided to go to Serice’s ■Club (situated outside of New Iberia) to ■call up Brown’s brother in Opelousas. When the group left Brown’s house, it was .■dark enough to burn the car lights. They stopped at Serice’s Club, and while his wife made the call Brown drank two bottles of beer. (While there is testimony that Brown had formerly been charged with “Driving While Intoxicated,” there is no contradictory evidence to the fact that he only drank two bottles of beer at the Club that night.) After remaining at the Club for thirty-five or forty minutes, the group headed East for a return to Brown’s house.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
183 So. 2d 313, 248 La. 943, 1966 La. LEXIS 2426, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brown-v-southern-farm-bureau-casualty-insurance-la-1966.