Chicago & Erie Railroad v. Mitchell

110 N.E. 680, 184 Ind. 588, 1915 Ind. LEXIS 171
Indiana Supreme Court·Decided December 14, 1915·No. No. 22,999·Published·Cited by 15 cases

Opinion

Morris, C. J.

1. 2. Action for death, involving the relation of master and servant,, under the rules of the common-law except as modified by the.act of March 2, 1911, known as the Employer’s Liability Act. Acts 1911 p. 145, §§8020a-8020k Burns 1914. At common law the servant assumed the ordinary' risks incident to his employment, which included the particular risk of injury from the negligence of a competent fellow servant. Haskell & Barker Car Co. v. Przezdziankowski (1908), 170 Ind. 1, 9, 10, 83 N. E. 626, 127 Am, St. 352, 14 L. R. A. (N. S.) 972. Section 1 of said act (§8020a Burns 1914, supra) expressly makes an employer, with five or more.persons employed, liable to an employe for negligent injury by a fellow servant. The effect of this section is to abrogate the assumed risk rule in so far as it applies to the particular risk of injury by a fellow servant. Vandalia R. Co. v. Stillwell (1914), 181 Ind. 267, 270, 104 N. E. 289; Chicago, etc., R. Co. v. Mitchell (1916), ante 383, 110 N. E. 215; Pittsburgh, etc., R. Co. v. Lightheiser (1907), 168 Ind. 438, 449, 450, 78 N. E. 1033. Sections 2 and 3 of the act of 1911 (§§8020b, 8020c Burns 1914, supra), further restrict the application of the common-law doctrine of assumed risk and that of contributory negligence, but such restrictions are not presented here for consideration. The complaint avers, and the evidence shows, that appellant, the employer, had in its service more than five persons, and that the decedent’s fatal injury resulted from the negligence of his fellow servants. Under such facts, section 1 of the statute eliminates the common-law defense of assumption of risk of injury by a fellow servant.

The complaint, among other things, alleges that on and previous to July 22, 1911,. appellant maintained on its grounds, at Huntington, ten tracks, running [592]*592north and south, which were used for placing and holding freight cars for repair work thereon. These tracks were numbered, and number one was the west track. Immediately west of said track number one there was located another one called a supply track, used by appellant to haul in carloads of lumber, bolts, nails, etc., and to haul out cars loaded with car wheels. This supply track was always occupied to some extent by cars loaded with materials of the character above mentioned. Immediately west of the supply track, and parallel therewith, appellant had a long building, holding lumber for car repairs, and immediately south of this building, four feet from and parallel with the supply track appellant had another house containing bolts, nuts, nails and other supplies for car repairs. On July 22, 1911, appellee’s decedent was in appellant’s employ as a car repairer and was then engaged in repairing a car located at a point on track number four, east of the supply track and to the south of the bolt house. At that time appellant had placed on the supply track, immediately south of the bolt house, two freight cars, not coupled, with a space of four feet between them. Decedent in his repair work, needed some bolts, and started from his place of work to the bolt house to get them, and attempted to pass between the cars on his way, but in so doing was crushed to death by appellant' violently pushing an engine and string of cars against the said north car on the supply track causing it to come in violent contact with the other one, while decedent was between them. It is further alleged that the route taken by decedent was the shortest and most practical one from the car being repaired to the bolt house, and that the four feet of open space between the two cars was provided by appellant for the purpose of giving the car repairers a short route to the [593]*593bolt house; that before attempting to pass between the cars decedent looked and listened for the approach of cars but did not see or hear any and could not have seen or heard, and did not know, of, the approach thereof; that appellant gave no signal nor warning of the approach of the string of cars, and knew that the open space was left for the aforesaid purpose, and that open spaces of such character on the supply track were used by its employes. as passage ways to the bolt house.

3. 4. Appellant filed a demurrer to the complaint and its overruling is assigned as error, but it has failed, in its brief, to point out any defect therein, and has therefore waived a consideration of its sufficiency. There' was a trial by jury, with answers to interrogatories, and a general verdict for appellee. Appellant’s motions for judgment on answers to interrogatories and for a new trial, were each overruled. It is claimed that the trial court erred in overruling the motion for judgment. There were fifty-five interrogatories submitted to the jury for answer. While it is stated in the brief, in general terms that there is irreconcilable conflict between the general verdict and the answers, it may well be doubted if any conflict is suggested by such particular designation as entitles appellant to a consideration of the error assigned. We have, however, examined the answers, but perceive no irreconcilable conflict on any material issue.

5. [594]*5946. 7. [593]*593Appellant’s fourteenth reason assigned in its motion for a new trial was as follows: “The answers to the following special interrogatories propounded to the jury and the answers of said jury to each of said interrogatories separately, are contrary to the undisputed evidence in said cause: fifteen (15), seventeen (17), eighteen (18) [594]*594and fifty-five (55).” It contends here that the trial court erred in overruling the .motion, because as-claimed, a consideration of the evidence discloses a-total lack of support for the answers to the four questions. Were the claim conceded, we preceive no reason why such fact is'material, nor has any reason or authority therefor, been suggested or cited in appellant’s brief. The judgment here was on the general verdict, not on the answers. Vandalia Coal Co. v. Price, (1912), 178 Ind. 546, 549, 97 N. E. 429. If the answers found, in favor of appellee, facts covering a material is.sue which appellee was bound to prove, and which had no support in the evidence, a logical situation would be presented where appellant would be entitled by proper procedure, to a reversal of the judgment, because, in such case the general verdict, on a material issue, would have no support. But such relief'would be granted for such reason, if presented, and hot because the answers fail of such support. This motion for a new trial does assign, as grounds therefor, the insufficiency of the evidence to support the general verdict, but such question is not presented in the points and authorities set out in the brief, and is therefore waived. .There are instances where this court may consider the lack of evidence to support answers to interrogatories but no such situation here appears. Barr v. Sumner (1915), 183 Ind. 402, 107 N. E. 675, 109 N. E. 193. The evidence shows that on a line running east and west between the bolt and lumber buildings there was constructed a path about eight feet wide across the supply and repair tracks. This was made of boards, in the spaces between the tracks — about ten feet — and, between the rails of the tracks, it was constructed of cinders. The cinders and boards were practically level with the tops of the rails. [595]

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Chicago & Erie Railroad v. Mitchell, 110 N.E. 680, 184 Ind. 588, 1915 Ind. LEXIS 171 (Ind. 1915).

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