Crandall v. Ladd

7 N.W.2d 642, 142 Neb. 736, 1943 Neb. LEXIS 11
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 15, 1943
DocketNo. 31478
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 7 N.W.2d 642 (Crandall v. Ladd) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Crandall v. Ladd, 7 N.W.2d 642, 142 Neb. 736, 1943 Neb. LEXIS 11 (Neb. 1943).

Opinion

Yeager, J.

This is an action for damages by Sue M. Crandall, administratrix of the estate of Lawrence G. Crandall, deceased, who was the wife of the deceased, plaintiff and appellee, against Charles F. Ladd and Minnie Ladd, defendants and appellants.

The case was tried to a jury with the result that a verdict was returned in favor of the plaintiff and against defendants for the sum of $8,200. Judgment was entered on the verdict and the defendants have appealed.

Since the appeal the defendant Charles F. Ladd has died and his death has been suggested but no further steps have been taken.

The action grows out of an automobile collision which occurred in the intersection of Sixteenth and Q streets in Lincoln, Nebraska, at about 3 o’clock p. m. on February 23, 1941. At the time of the accident Lawrence G. Crandall was driving a Lincoln Zephyr automobile eastward on Q street, which automobile was occupied by three persons other than himself. They were Sue M. Crandall, owner of [738]*738the automobile and plaintiff here, Kenneth Leroy King and Esther King, his wife. Mr. King was to the right in the front seat, Mrs. King to the left in the rear seat and Mrs. Crandall to her right. At the same time the defendant Minnie Ladd was driving a Ford automobile north on Sixteenth street. She was alone in the automobile. The automobile she was driving belonged the defendant Charles F. Ladd, her husband, and was used generally by the defendants as a “family purpose” car. The automobile of the defendants came into collision with the right rear fender of the one in which plaintiff was riding. As a result of the collision the Crandall automobile was overturned, resulting in injuries to Lawrence G. Crandall from which he died.

The plaintiff has brought this action as administratrix and for her benefit as widow and sole heir of the deceased, Lawrence G. Crandall. She claims that the collision and the consequent injury and death of her husband were the result of the negligence of the defendant Minnie Ladd, and that by reason of the ownership and use to which the' automobile was put the defendant Charles F. Ladd became chargeable with such negligence.

Briefly summarized to the extent necessary to be set forth here, the plaintiff charged that the defendant Minnie Ladd was guilty of negligence in the following particulars: She drove her automobile at an excessive rate of speed; she failed to have her automobile under proper control; she failed to keep a proper lookout; she, after observing the danger in which plaintiff’s decedent was placed, or being in a position to make such observation, failed to act in such manner as to permit the plaintiff’s decedent to extricate himself from such danger; and she failed to- yield to the plaintiff’s decedent the right of way which had been forfeited by her on account of the excessive rate of speed at which she was driving.

The defendants jointly and severally answered the petition. In the answer the collision is admitted and also that Lawrence G. Crandall died as a result of the collision. They denied that the defendant Minnie Ladd was responsi[739]*739ble for the collision. Further answering they charged that the collision was caused and contributed to by the negligence of plaintiff’s decedent as follows: That he failed to yield the right of way to the defendant Minnie Ladd; that he drove at a high and excessive rate of speed; that he failed to slacken his speed; that he failed to see the automobile operated by defendant Minnie Ladd, or if he did see it he acted in disregard of the knowledge thereof; that he did not have his automobile under control; and that he drove his automobile in disregard of warning signs erected pursuant to ordinance of the city of Lincoln. They further charged that the plaintiff was guilty of negligence which contributed to the accident as follows: That she failed to keep a proper lookout for traffic and particularly of the automobile operated by the defendant Minnie Ladd, or if she did keep such proper lookout she failed to warn the decedent of its approach; and that she failed to caution, warn or protest to the decedent either concerning the manner of his driving or the existence and manner of other traffic on the highway. There are other allegations of negligence, but they either find no support in the evidence or are of like import to the allegations summarized herein.

The reply controverts the affirmative allegations of the answer which are inconsistent with the allegations of the petition.

. Numerous errors are assigned as grounds for reversal. They are arranged in groups in appellants’ brief for discussion, and to the extent that it is necessary to discuss them we will follow this arrangement. The first four deal with the question of whether or not the evidence is sufficient factually and legally to support a verdict in favor of plaintiff.

For a discussion of these assignments it is necessary to discuss the evidence as to the rates of speed that the two automobiles approached the intersection, the relative time of the respective approaches and the duties devolving upon the parties growing out of the relative direction of approach.

[740]*740There can be no question and it is substantially agreed that if the two automobiles had approached at approximately the same time and at lawful rates of speed, the Ladd automobile under the law and facts of this case, having been to the right of the Crandall automobile, would have had the right of way in the intersection. Comp. St. 1929, sec. 39-1115; Comp. St. Supp. 1941, sec. 39-1148; Ordinance, City of Lincoln, No. 3787, sec. 701; Schrage v. Miller, 123 Neb. 266, 242 N. W. 649; Plotkin v. Checker Cab Co., 133 Neb. 1, 274 N. W. 198; Parks v. Metz, 140 Neb. 235, 299 N. W. 643. The evidence of the parties on this point is in sharp conflict. The evidence of the defendants varies to some extent, but it may be said generally to indicate that the two automobiles approached the'intersection at about the same time. The evidence of the plaintiff varies in considerable degree, but certain of the witnesses testified that the Ladd automobile was approximately a half block away and others that it was a lesser distance but some distance back when the Crandall automobile was entering the intersection. All of them testified that the Crandall automobile was in the intersection ahead of the Ladd automobile.

The evidence as to rates of speed is also in sharp conflict. The defendant estimated the speed of her own car at 20 miles an hour. Others estimated it as high as 35 miles an hour. A witness or witnesses estimated the speed of the two cars as about the same and at from 20 to 25 miles an hour. Witnesses estimated the speed of the Crandall car from 15 to 30 miles an hour.

It follows, therefore, that on these essential propositions, the evidence being in dispute and the theory of the plaintiff finding substantial support in the evidence, issues of fact on the existence of negligence and contributory negligence in the light of the pleaded and proved ordinances of the city of Lincoln were presented for determination by a jury.

By ordinance No. 3787 of the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, section 106, the intersection in question is within the “congested district,” and by section 720 of the same ordinance [741]*741the maximum speed allowed in the “congested district” is 15 miles an hour. Paragraph (a), sec.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
7 N.W.2d 642, 142 Neb. 736, 1943 Neb. LEXIS 11, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/crandall-v-ladd-neb-1943.