Collier v. Texas Constr. Co.

89 So. 2d 855, 228 Miss. 824, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 570
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 15, 1956
DocketNo. 40218
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 89 So. 2d 855 (Collier v. Texas Constr. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Collier v. Texas Constr. Co., 89 So. 2d 855, 228 Miss. 824, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 570 (Mich. 1956).

Opinion

McGehee, C.J.

This is a proceeding on behalf of T. C.. Collier and wife, as the parents and sole heirs at law of T. C. Collier, Jr., deceased, for death benefits under the Workmen’s Compensation Act of 1948 as amended. Both the attorney-referee and the Workmen’s Compensation Commission held that the death of T. C. Collier, Jr., arose out of and in the course of his employment with the Texas Construction Company, but that he left surviving him no dependents. Upon appeal to the circuit court by the claimants, the case was affirmed on direct appeal but was reversed on the cross appeal taken by the employer Texas Construction Company and its insurance carrier United States Fidelity & Guaranty Company, for the reason that the circuit court was of the opinion that the decision of the attorney-referee and the full commission was correct in holding that the employee left no dependents, but that they were in error in holding that the death arose out of and in the course of the employment and in ordering that the sum of $500.00 be paid into the Second Injury Fund as provided for under Section 31(b) of the Act, in the absence of dependents.

There is no substantial conflict in the testimony, and the sole question necessary to be decided is whether or not the death of T. C. Collier, Jr., arose out of and in the course of his employment under the provisions of our Workmen’s Compensation Act as heretofore construed [827]*827by this Court, when applied to the undisputed facts as to how the employee came to his death. If this question is answered in the negative we do not reach the question of whether or not the deceased employee left any dependents.

The deceased employee, T. C. Collier, Jr., together with two other colored boys, N. R. Mann and Mack Chatham, Jr., were on June 11, 1954, engaged about the work of their employment in transporting by motor boat a number of kegs of drinking water from the west bank of the west prong of Pascagoula River to the east bank thereof to be delivered to other employees engaged in certain construction work, and while returning from the east bank to the west bank of said river, and while transporting a pump on the boat from the east bank to the west bank of the river, they determined among themselves that they would dive into the river and swim to the west bank thereof, leaving the operator of the boat and the foreman of the crew seated in the boat.

One of the three boys, Mack Chatham, asked permission of the foreman for the boys to dive out of the boat into the water to swim ashore, but was told by the foreman that if they did so they “would be on their own”, that is to say that it would be on their own responsibility. Neither of the boys had asked for permission on any prior occasion, and no employee of the said construction company had actually engaged in swimming in the river, in crossing or recrossing the same, at any time during the progress of this construction'work.

The proof clearly discloses that each of the three boys removed their socks, shoes and other personal belongings except their trousers, and that N. R. Mann dived into the water first followed by Mack Chatham and that as they dived into the water their fellow employee T. C. Collier, Jr., was still in the boat but had prepared to dive into the river by removing his shirt, socks, shoes, watch and pocketbook, which were found in the boat after he had drown[828]*828ed; that upon hearing someone from the bank holler to them Mann and Chatham looked back and saw Collier going under the water. In fact, N. R. Mann was asked “Did you jump in first? A. Yes, sir. Q. Who was'the next? A. Mack Chatham. Q. T. C. was last? A. Yes, sir.” Mann’s testimony to this effect was undisputed.

The proof further discloses that it was between 7:30 and 8:00 o’clock A.M. when the boys dived into the stream, and that the reason for doing so was because the weather was hot and they wanted to cool off. There is nothing in the proof to indicate that these employees desired to cool off in the river so as to avoid being too hot to unload the pump from the boat when it reached the western shore of the stream. Nor is it shown whether or not the pump was of such size or weight as to require any exertion on the part of these employees to unload it.

In other words, it is clear that the boys merely decided to go in swimming while the motor boat operator and the foreman were crossing the stream with the boat, and that they were doing this for their own satisfaction in a course of action wholly unrelated to the performance of their duties within the area of their employment on the boat or the performance of their work on the bank of the stream. This recreation was not one which had been sanctioned or acquiesced in by the employer on any former occasion, even though not expressly forbidden.

No one testified that the employee accidentally fell out of the boat or that he was thrown out of the same by its movement while endeavoring to remain thereon in crossing the river. Since he had proposed to the other boys that they all jump in the river and swim ashore, and since he had prepared to voluntarily jump in the water as shown by his acts of removing his shirt, socks, shoes, watch and pocketbook, it would be mere conjecture to assume that he either fell in the water or was thrown into the same by the movement of the boat while about the duties of his employment.

[829]*829If the employee voluntarily jumped into this treacherous stream he was not thereafter present and ready to carry out any orders of his employer in connection with his work, since his duties were not to he performed in the river hut the area of his employment was in the boat when crossing the river and on the bank when loading or unloading the same.

In the case of United Dredging Co. v. Lindberg, 18 Fed. 2d 453, Cert. denied 274 U. S. 759, 71 L. Ed. 1337, the employee was an assistant engineer and his duties were to be performed in the boiler room of the ship, but when he got too hot he went up on the deck of the ship to get some fresh air and cool off. While seated near the outer edge of the ship for that purpose he turned sick and upon being accosted and asked as to what he was doing there, he started suddenly and accidentally fell backward into the canal. We do not think that this case is applicable to the facts in the instant case.

We think that the case at bar is more analogous to the case of Persons, et al v. Stokes, 222 Miss. 479, 76 So. 2d 517, where the employee was hired to hunt some cows. He was injured in the eye by a squirrel shooter after he had “turned aside from the business of his employer to engage in an activity wholly unrelated to his employment and not in any manner incidental thereto. ’ ’ In that case the employer had knowledge that the employee occasionally hunted squirrel and made the statement that he did not object to squirrel hunting by his employees if the hunting did not interfere with their work. It was held in that case that the injury to the employee’s eye did not arise out of or in the course of his employment, the Court saying: “He did not receive his injury at a time when he was fulfilling any of the duties of his employment, or at a time when he was engaged in doing something incidental thereto, or at a time when he was engaged in the furtherance of the employer’s business. His injury did not result from a risk to which his employment ex[830]*830posed him.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
89 So. 2d 855, 228 Miss. 824, 1956 Miss. LEXIS 570, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/collier-v-texas-constr-co-miss-1956.