City of Shawnee v. Bryant

1957 OK 25, 310 P.2d 754, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 409
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedFebruary 5, 1957
Docket37054
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 1957 OK 25 (City of Shawnee v. Bryant) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
City of Shawnee v. Bryant, 1957 OK 25, 310 P.2d 754, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 409 (Okla. 1957).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

On and prior to April 1, 1953, Robert Bryant and Mamie Bryant, the defendants in error> owned a certain tract of land in Pottawatomie County, adjacent to the city of Shawnee, consisting of 107.5 acres, on which they resided, conducted farming operations, and operated a small drive-in dairy.

On or about April 1, 1953, the City of Shawnee, a municipal corporation, plaintiff in error, completed the construction of a sewage disposal plant on land adjacent to the Bryant land and approximately 365 feet west and south of the Bryants’ dwelling house. The construction of this plant was in accord with plans approved by the State Health Department. No part of the Bryant land was occupied in the construction of the plant except an existing ditch, a portion of which crossed part of the southwest corner of the Bryant land, was cleaned out by defendant for outfall purposes to permit the treated sewage to flow into the North Canadian River.

On September 11, 1953, Robert and Mamie Bryant commenced this action in the District Court of Pottawatomie County against the City of Shawnee, a municipal corporation, by petition in the nature of reverse condemnation proceedings. The petition, in substance- alleged plaintiff’s ownership of the land here involved, the location and construction of the sewage disposal plant,- its date of completion, the appropriation of approximately one acre of plaintiff’s land and destruction of certain fences without benefit of either condemnation proceedings or agreement and payment, and permanent damages to plaintiff’s land coupled together with defendant locating, constructing and operating its said plant and outfall ditch in such close proximity to plaintiffs’ home. The petition also alleged additional, damages to plaintiffs’ land by reason of sickening, unhealthful, foul and evil smelling odors and gases emanating from de7 fendants’ said sewage disposal plant and outfall ditch.

The prayer was for the appointment of commissioners to view the premises and assess the damages.

Notice was served upon the defendant as provided in condemnation proceedings and after hearing had Commissioners were appointed. They filed their report assessing the damages to plaintiffs’ property at $5,000.

Both plaintiffs and defendant made demand for jury trial. Defendant then filed exceptions to the report of commissioners, in which it objected to the jurisdiction of the court, denied the cutting of any drainage ditch across plaintiffs’ land, denied that it at any time appropriated or took a part of plaintiffs’ land for sewage disposal plant purpose, moved to vacate the order appointing commissioners, moved to vacate, set aside and hold for naught the report, raised in every manner the question of jurisdiction and power of the court in the matter, and complained of the right of plaintiffs to maintain the action.

A hearing was had upon defendant’s exceptions, whereupon the court sustained the exceptions’ vacated and set aside the report of commissioners, vacated the order appointing commissioners, and permitted plaintiffs to file an amended petition.

On December 28, 1953, plaintiffs filed their amended petition alleging, in substance, the allegations of their original petition, also charging defendant with negligence in locating and constructing its, said plant in such close proximity to plaintiffs’ land as to cause a diminution in value of plaintiffs’ property, and in negligently lor eating, constructing and operating its said plant, thereby causing noxious, sickening, unhealthful, foul, evil smelling odors and gases to escape, permeate their home and hang in the low places oh their land, thus' making it unbearable and impossible for plaintiffs to live in their home, by reason whereof their property was greatly diminished in value. The amended petition also alleged that plaintiffs’ property just prior to the coiigtruction> of said plant had a fait: *757 cash market value of $50,000; that since its construction, the fair cash market value of their land was not in excess of $22,500, and as a result thereof they had been damaged by defendant in the sum of $27,500.

Plaintiffs further alleged demand of defendant of payment for the injury and defendant’s refusal to pay such demand. Based upon the amended petition, summons was duly and regularly issued and service had upon the defendant. Thereafter the defendant filed objection to the court’s jurisdiction, plea of res judicata and demurrer to the amended petition, all of which were overruled.

Defendant’s answer to the amended petition is in substance a general denial and challenges the trial court’s jurisdiction, claiming that plaintiffs’ amended petition in substance seeks relief in reverse condemnation and cannot be maintained as a common law action in damages, in effect, pleads res judicata; specifically denies that plaintiffs were damaged, or that said land was affected in any manner by defendant’s location, construction and operation of its sewage disposal plant; specifically denies that defendant was in any manner negligent in the construction or operation of said plant, and alleges that if any condition, as alleged by plaintiffs, ever occurred same was only temporary and did not now exist. Reply was by general denial. The case was tried to a jury, resulting in a verdict and judgment for plaintiffs in the sum of $10,000.

Motion for new trial was duly filed and overruled from which defendant appeals, presenting seventeen assignments of error in its petition in error, but in its brief has elected to argue same under four main propositions. The assignments of error not covered by these propositions are waived. Harrington v. City of Tulsa, 170 Okl. 20, 39 P.2d 120; Schuman v. Sternberg, 179 Okl. 118, 65 P.2d 413.

Defendant first contends that the trial court erred in refusing to dismiss the plaintiffs’ condemnation cause of action, after having sustained defendant’s exceptions to the report of commissioners. There might be some merit to this contention if the error complained of intervened to defendant’s prejudice in the trial of the cause. However, defendant neither suggests or points out, how nor in what manner it has been prejudiced thereby. The prevailing rule in this jurisdiction places the burden upon the appellant or plaintiff in error to show affirmatively that error intervened to his prejudice in trial of the cause. See Snider v. Perkins, 33 Okl. 338, 125 P. 448, and cases of like import.

Defendant next contends that the court erred in overruling its objection to jurisdiction, plea of res judicata, and demurrer to plaintiffs’ amended petition, and in overruling its objection to the introduction of any evidence on the part of plaintiffs, at the beginning of the trial.

Defendant’s argument is bottomed on the premise that the amended petition alleges only such facts as constitute a proceeding-in reverse condemnation and does not allege facts sufficient in law to constitute a common law action in damages for the maintenance of a nuisance. Defendant bases its argument upon allegations appearing in the petition which allege the taking of part of plaintiffs’ property, and, in effect, contends that where land is taken or damaged for a public use that the' special proceeding under the eminent domain statutes of the State is the sole remedy of plaintiffs. In support of this contention defendant cites Chicago, R. I. & P. Ry. Co., v. Jennings, 175 Okl. 524, 53 P.2d 691, and Oklahoma City v. Wells, 185 Okl. 369, 91 P.2d 1077, 1081, 123 A.L.R.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1957 OK 25, 310 P.2d 754, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 409, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-shawnee-v-bryant-okla-1957.