Gibney v. St. Louis Transit Co.

103 S.W. 43, 204 Mo. 704, 1907 Mo. LEXIS 96
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedJune 11, 1907
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 103 S.W. 43 (Gibney v. St. Louis Transit Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gibney v. St. Louis Transit Co., 103 S.W. 43, 204 Mo. 704, 1907 Mo. LEXIS 96 (Mo. 1907).

Opinion

BURGESS, J.

This is an action for damages for personal injuries alleged to have been sustained by plaintiff on the 13th day of June, 1902, by being thrown) from defendant’s ear, by reason of its premature start, whilst plaintiff was in the act of alighting therefrom at the corner of Taylor and Washington avenues in the city of St. Louis. The action was instituted in the circuit court of the city of St. Louis, and afterwards, on the 18th day of April, 1903, on application of plaintiff for a change of venue1, the cause was transferred to the circuit court of Montgomery county, where plaintiff, upon trial had, recovered a verdict and judgment for the sum of thirty thousand dollars. Defendant filed motion for new trial, and afterwards, and within four days after the rendition of the verdict, filed a supplemental motion for a new trial, also motion in arrest ,of judgment, which motions were by the court overruled, and defendant appealed.

The petition is in the usual form of an action by an injured passenger against a carrier, and charged in substance that the defendant at the times alleged was a corporation by virtue of the law of Missouri and used and operated the railway and car mentioned for the purpose of carrying passengers for hire from one point to another in the city of St. Louis as a street railway company. “That on the 13th day of June, 1902, the defendant, by its servants in charge of its car, received the plaintiff as a passenger thereon, and for a valuable consideration by the plaintiff paid to the defendant, undertook and agreed with the plaintiff to carry her safely as a passenger on said car to her point of destination on defendant’s line, and to then stop said car, to-wit, at Washington Boulevard (or avenue) and Taylor avenue, in the city of St. Louis, and allow plaintiff a reasonable time and opportunity to alight in safety; avers that the defendant, unmindful of its undertaking and of its duty in the premises, did, by its servants in [710]*710charge of said car, whilst it was stopped at the plaintiff’s said point of destination to enable passengers, including the plaintiff, to alight from said car and whilst the plaintiff was in the act of alighting from said car, and before she had a reasonable time or opportunity to do so, negligently cause and suffer said car to be started in motion, whereby the plaintiff was thrown and caused to fall from said car to the street, and to be thereby permanently injured upon the spine, chest and body, and also to sustain a great and permanent injury to the nervous system and also to be injured internally.”

The petition then sets up an ordinance of the city of St. Louis prohibiting conductors from allowing women to enter or leave cars whilst in motion and in disregard of this ordinance, and claimed that such violation of this ordinance contributed to cause plaintiff’s injuries, and alleges her injuries as follows: “That by her injuries, caused as aforesaid, the plaintiff has suffered and will suffer great pain of body and mind; has been permanently crippled; has been permanently disabled from carrying on her business as a keeper of boarders, and carrying on business as a saleswoman and other business, and has been permanently disabled from labor; has been made an invalid for life; has incurred and will incur large expenses for medicines, medical and surgical attention and nursing, to her damage in the sum of fifty thousand dollars, for which sum she prays judgment.”

The answer was a general denial and a plea of contributory negligence on the part of the plaintiff in alighting from a moving car at a time and place when and where the same had not been stopped for the purpose of permitting passengers to alight therefrom.

The reply was a general denial.

Upon almost every salient fact in evidence in this [711]*711case the testimony on behalf of the opposing parties is in direct conflict.

Plaintiff’s evidence tended to prove that she was fifty-two years of age, had lived in St. Louis about twelve years, and that her health had been perfect prior to the accident. She was connected with a medical firm, and traveled,' lectured, and sold a certain proprietary medicine, called G-ranagophone, for women only. Her earnings from' this employment averaged thirty or forty dollars per week. She also kept boarders, but there is no evidence as to the earnings or profits she derived from such business.

At about eight o-’clock on the evening of June 13th, 1902, at Spring and Olive streets in the city of St. Louis, plaintiff, accompanied by her daughter Marguerite, boarded one of defendant’s cars, whose course was west on Olive street, and north on Taylor avenue. The car had seats running crosswise from side to side, and a step or running hoard along the. sidé of the ear from end to end, for the use of' passengers in boarding the car or alighting therefrom.- At the end of each seat was an upright standard in which was an electric button by means of which passengers indicated to the conductor their desire to- have the car stopped. Plaintiff boarded the car at the right side and sat at the end of the third or fourth seat from the front, being thus close to the running board and on the east side of the car as it was going north on Taylor avenue. Just before reaching Washington Boulevard she rang the bell twice for the car to stop, whereupon her daughter asked her why she rang it the second time, and she replied, “The conductor is'doubly warned that we want to get off.” When the car stopped she- got up from the seat, stepped on the running board preparatory to alighting, and while in that position the car started, throwing her to the streét and into the gutter by the pavement. Plaintiff’s description of the accident was [712]*712substantially corroborated by the- testimony of her daughter, Marguerite, who sat beside her on the car, and also by the testimony of witnesses Finnegan and Stone, passengers thereon. It further appears from their testimony that plaintiff fell about two feet from the curbing on the east side of the street, and remained there until she received assistance; that five or six passengers alighted from the car at that point, whilst plaintiff was leaving the car, two of which passengers were women; that while plaintiff was standing on the running board the signal for starting the car was given, and that the signal to- stop was given just after she fell, but that the car ran about a hundred feet before it came to- a standstill; that at the time plaintiff was standing on the running board she was facing north, the direction in which the car was going. Plaintiff was assisted to her home by her daughter and a Mr. Bartley, and she was immediately put in bed by her daughters. Her left hip was- bruised and very sore for a good while, and then trouble to her spine ensued. Dr. Brokaw, the defendant’s surgeon, called on plaintiff the morning after the accident and continued to treat her for about two weeks. After Dr. Brokaw ceased to -treat her, Dr. Witherspoon was called in, but he not being a specialist in spinal trouble he recommended Dr. Crandall, who was called in, and he continued to- treat the plaintiff up to the time of the trial. Plaintiff’s evidence further tended to show that since her injury she was unable to' do any work or even take care of herself; that she was unable to take a bath without assistance, and was as helpless as a child. She suffered a great deal of pain in her back, dizziness in her head, numbness in her limbs and severe pain in her hips and legs. She could get around a room by holding onto things for support and taking short steps, but since her injury she had not been out of the house except when carried out.

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Bluebook (online)
103 S.W. 43, 204 Mo. 704, 1907 Mo. LEXIS 96, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gibney-v-st-louis-transit-co-mo-1907.