Goshorn v. Hattman

387 S.W.2d 422
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 14, 1965
DocketNo. 6719
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 387 S.W.2d 422 (Goshorn v. Hattman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Goshorn v. Hattman, 387 S.W.2d 422 (Tex. Ct. App. 1965).

Opinion

PARKER, Justice.

Willard C. Goshorn sued Samuel C. Hattman and wife, Johnnie H. Hattman, for damages due to personal injuries sustained by Mrs. Goshorn in a collision between two automobiles, one driven by Mrs. Goshorn and the other driven by Mrs. Hattman. In a trial to a jury both drivers were found, to be guilty of acts of negligence, each proximately causing the collision. Judgment was entered upon the jury verdict that Goshorn recover nothing as against the Hattmans.

The collision occurred at an uncontrolled intersection of Rein Street and Eleventh Street in Orange, Texas. Rein Street runs-east and west, Eleventh Street runs north and south. Mrs. Hattman was travelling south on Eleventh Street, while Mrs. Goshorn was proceeding east on Rein, so that before the collision the cars would have been approaching at right angles to each other with Mrs. Goshorn on the right hand side of Mrs. Hattman as they approached the intersection. The two cars arrived at the intersection at the same time.Mrs. Hattman’s car hit Mrs. Goshorn’s car —the front of the Hattman car striking Mrs. Goshorn’s left front door at a diagonal angle, but not a sideswipe. Mrs. Hatt-man saw Mrs. Goshorn as the latter was making her turn to the right into the intersection. Mrs. Hattman immediately applied her brakes. The jury found that Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout which was a proximate cause of the collision in question. Further, the jury found that Mrs. Goshorn failed to have her automobile under proper control, which was a proximate cause of the collision.

Mrs. Goshorn testified: She never saw Mrs. Hattman at any time before the collision; that she looked to her right but did not know whether she looked to her left or not, admitting that after she arrived at the intersection nothing obstructed her view to the left which was the direction from which Mrs. Hattman’s automobile was approaching the intersection; Eleventh Street was a wide street, it was upon Eleventh Street that the collision occurred; that she was headed east and, quoting exactly, from her testimony:

“ — a lots of people pull up and they don’t see a car coming, they ease around. If there was any traffic coming from the other direction, I might have been more particular, but there wasn’t any traffic coming from the right. It was a two-way street and there’s plenty of room to pass.
“Q. Well, so you were turning to. your right — so if she were coming [424]*424from your left, you were turning right in front of her then? Is that not true?
. “A. Not necessarily. I was just turning right. I wasn’t turning right in front of anybody. I was just turning right on the street — easing around the corner about four or five miles an hour.”

Appellant urges there is no evidence to justify the submission of an issue to the jury as to whether or not Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout. Appellant also contends there was no evidence to support a jury finding that Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout. Such points of error are overruled.

Considering all the evidence, such finding of the jury that Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout is not so contrary to 'the great weight and preponderance of the evidence as to be manifestly wrong and unjust. Appellant’s points of error contending (a) that there was insufficient evidence to support a jury finding that Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout, and (b) that such finding was against the greater weight and preponderance of credible evidence are overruled.

A special issue was submitted to the jury as to whether or not Mrs. Goshorn had her automobile under proper control, the jury answer being that she did not have her automobile under proper control. In its points of error appellant contends (a) that there was no evidence to support the submission of a special issue as to whether or not Mrs. Goshorn had her automobile under proper control; (b) there was no evidence to support a jury finding that Mrs. Goshorn failed to have proper control; (c) the issue should not have been submitted because Mrs. Goshorn had no ;duty of proper control toward Mrs. Háttman; and (d) that the submission of such issue was a comment on the weight of the evidence. Appellant did not timely object to the form of the special issue on proper control on the part of Mrs. Goshorn. Such contention was urged for the first time in appellant’s motion for new trial. Under Rule 272, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, appellant waived any objections to the form of the issue on proper control. Even though Mrs. Hattman was under the statutory duty to yield the right-of-way, when she failed to do so the exercise of ordinary care may have required Mrs. Go-shorn as the operator of the other vehicle to apply her brakes, which she did not do, or take other evasive action as to speed and direction of the automobile she had the duty of controlling. The question of proper control is tied into the question of proper lookout. Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout which resulted in her failure to attempt in any manner to properly control her car. To use Mrs. Goshorn’s language, she “might have been more particular, but there wasn’t any traffic coming from the right.” She did not concern herself with traffic to her left. There is no merit in appellant’s “no evidence” points of error relating to proper control of the car. See McWilliams v. Muse, 157 Tex. 109, 300 S.W.2d 643 (1957). Be that as it may, since the jury found Mrs. Goshorn failed to keep a proper lookout on the occasion in question, which was a proximate cause of the collision, thereby barring appellant’s recovery in this suit, the submission of an issue as to whether or not Mrs. Goshorn had proper control of her car was not calculated to cause and probably did not cause the rendition of an improper judgment as required by Rule 434, T.R.C.P. Appellant’s points of error relating to the issue on whether Mrs. Goshorn had her automobile under proper control are overruled.

The jury found that Mrs. Goshorn would not necessarily incur in the future any doctor bills, hospital bills or medicines as the result of her injuries. There is some evidence from Dr. Williams to the effect that she would probably need to consult a doctor about once a month and buy medicine, with a total future expense of not [425]*425■over $9.00 a month; however, the same doctor testified he had not treated her for her injuries for many months hut had treated her for other complaints. Mrs. Goshorn admitted that Dr. Williams had not treated her for injuries since she had started seeing him. The treatment she received from him was for other things than her injuries. Appellant’s point of error complaining of the finding of the jury that Mrs. Goshorn would have no future expense of doctor bills, medicines, etc., as proof that the answer of the jury indicated a clear bias and prejudice toward the appellant is overruled. Further, appellant’s points of error urging that the jury finding of improper control, improper lookout and that there would be no future medical damages evidence a clear bias and prejudice against the appellant are without merit and are overruled.

Appellant urges that Officer C. D.

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387 S.W.2d 422, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/goshorn-v-hattman-texapp-1965.