Freeman v. Vines

262 So. 2d 93, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6465
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 17, 1972
DocketNo. 8809
StatusPublished

This text of 262 So. 2d 93 (Freeman v. Vines) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Freeman v. Vines, 262 So. 2d 93, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6465 (La. Ct. App. 1972).

Opinion

TUCKER, Judge:

The plaintiff, Thomas C. Freeman, brings this suit to recover damages for his personal injuries, medical expenses and loss of earnings, arising from an accident which occurred on January 24, 1968 about 7:20 A.M. in the Town of Covington, Louisiana at the intersection of the Shoreline Branch of the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad and East Lockwood Street. The plaintiff was operating a motor car on the railroad tracks in a southerly direction, and before the accident the defendant driver of a Chevrolet automobile had been proceeding southerly on New Hampshire Street approximately paralleling the railroad right of way. When the Chevrolet car reached the intersection of New Hampshire and East Lockwood Streets, controlled by a traffic signal light, Vines turned right, moving westerly along East Lockwood for a distance variously estimated between thirty and forty feet toward the railroad tracks. In the meantime Freeman, a welder for the Railroad, accompanied by his helper, Jack H. Thomas, had moved the motorcar partially into the East Lockwood crossing at a speed estimated to be one mile per hour. When Freeman saw the car make its turn from New Hampshire Street, he immediately brought the motorcar to a halt some four feet into the right hand or west bound lane of East Lockwood. The Chevrolet car did not stop, but continued along its westerly path some thirty to forty feet until the right front of the automobile collided with the left front of the motorcar. The front of the motorcar was knocked off the track at an angle of about 45°, and Freeman, with the exception of his left leg which remained hooked under the seat, was knocked free from the motorcar onto the East Lockwood road surface. The rear wheel of the Chevrolet car passed over Freeman’s left arm and hand commencing approximately at his elbow.

Neither Jackson nor anyone else preceded the motor car to warn motorists traveling on East Lockwood of the motorcar’s approach. The only signal involved was the usual railroad stop sign which was positioned in advance of the railroad crossing, facing Vines as he drove toward the crossing. The crossing was substantially a blind one in view of the fact that the old railroad station encroached south almost to the East Lockwood right of way. Freeman further conceded that at some crossings an individual, such as Jackson, would flag automobiles before the motorcar entered the street, but he did not consider that the subject crossing or intersection demanded this attention.

The lower court decided that both Vines and Freeman were negligent — Vines wrongdoing, consisting of his failure to stop before proceeding across the railroad tracks, and plaintiff’s miscreant act being his entering the intersection before determining that the Vines right turning vehicle was approaching on New Hampshire Street, preparing to turn into East Lockwood.

The trial court dismissed plaintiff’s main demand and the reconventional demand of the defendant. From the judgment plaintiff has perfected this appeal.

In substance the plaintiff in brief raises as the sole issue the question as to whether or not the trial court properly concluded that Freeman was guilty of contributory negligence under the attendant facts.

The case of Thompson v. Morgan, 167 La. 335, 119 So. 69 (1928) involved a colli[95]*95sion between an automobile and a motorcar. Under the particular facts in the cited case before the Supreme Court both the driver of the automobile and the plaintiff operator of the motorcar were adjudged guilty of negligence and plaintiff was refused recovery. However, the facts in Thompson were at variance considerably with the facts in the instant case. There the motorcar operator had seen the approach of the automobile toward the crossing when the motorcar was 100 feet from the crossing while the motorcar was traveling ten to twelve miles per hour at which speed the motorcar could be stopped within forty to sixty feet. The motorcar operator was aware of the presence of the box car on the team track which obstructed the view to the north. Since the motorcar was not equipped with a gong or other similar signalling device, and with the further surmise that the operator realized that the attention of the motorist was directed to the south rather than to the north from which direction the motorcar was proceeding, the court determined that the negligence of the motorcar operator, along with that of the automobile driver in failing to stop, look and listen before crossing the three railroad tracks, was concurrent and continuous down to the moment of the accident. The doctrine of last clear chance was held inapplicable since the negligence of both parties continued to the time of the accident. The treatment accorded the last clear chance doctrine has been modified in the subsequent jurisprudence but neither of the litigants have, on appeal, contended that the doctrine of last clear chance applies to the particular facts of this case. In the instant case the motorcar moved into the intersection when there was no traffic on East Edgewood Street and before the Vines Chevrolet, then traveling south, had reached the New Hampshire and East Edgewood street intersection. The gist of both the Freeman and Jackson testimony is to the effect that when the motorcar first entered the East Edgewood intersection there was no traffic on the East Edgewood Street proceeding in either direction, and it was not until the motorcar was committed and had entered the intersection that the Chevrolet car turned right at the traffic light from New Hampshire into East Edgewood and proceeded west to the point of impact with the motorcar. Freeman estimated that when he first observed the Chevrolet car turn right into East Edge-wood, he brought the motorcar to a full stop within a space of two feet. It appeared to Jackson that the automobile rounded the corner at an excessive rate of speed, or that the driver lost control of the vehicle when he was confronted with the motorcar, and that Vines attempted to pass to the left of the motorcar. Therefore, the facts of the instant case are almost completely distinguishable from those of the Thompson case with the exception that the same types of vehicles were involved in each case, and the intersections or crossings were both blind ones.

We are uninformed with reference to legislation or jurisprudence which has tended to jettison the old and accepted statutory rule which requires a motor vehicle driver to stop, look and listen when negotiating a railroad crossing; the motorist is required to use such care as is commensurate with the existing dangers; and the greater the danger at a given crossing, such as is the case where the view is obstructed, the higher degree of caution which is imposed upon the motorist. The actual stopping of his vehicle by the motorist is not imperative unless the circumstances require this precaution. However, it has been uniformly held in Louisiana that the motorist must look and listen, and keep his car under such control that he can stop his vehicle to avoid an accident with a railroad unit either into or approaching the intersection. See Fowler v. Texas Pacific Ry. Co., 184 So.2d 756 (La.App.2d Cir. 1966); Sule v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 181 So.2d 280 (La.App. 4th Cir. 1965), writ refused 248 La. 916, 182 So.2d 664 (1966); Bertrand v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 160 So.2d 19 (La.App.3d Cir. 1964), writ refused 245 La. 1075, 162 So.2d [96]*96571 (1964); and Kavanaugh v. Travelers Insurance Co., 203 So.2d 780. Of course, the same duty of greater caution is imposed upon a train when it approaches a blind crossing. See Glisson v.

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Related

Sule v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Company
181 So. 2d 280 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1966)
Glisson v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Company
158 So. 2d 875 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1964)
Kavanaugh v. Travelers Insurance Company
203 So. 2d 780 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1967)
Glisson v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Company
165 So. 2d 289 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1964)
Bertrand v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Company
160 So. 2d 19 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1964)
Thompson v. Morgan
119 So. 69 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1928)
Manning v. Morrison Cafeterias Consolidated, Inc.
160 So. 2d 818 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1964)
Fowler v. Texas & Pacific Railway Co.
184 So. 2d 756 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1966)
Alexander v. Fidelity-Phoenix Insurance Co.
185 So. 2d 102 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1966)

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Bluebook (online)
262 So. 2d 93, 1972 La. App. LEXIS 6465, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/freeman-v-vines-lactapp-1972.