Haafke v. Mitchell

347 N.W.2d 381, 1984 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 1100
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedApril 11, 1984
Docket69483
StatusPublished
Cited by47 cases

This text of 347 N.W.2d 381 (Haafke v. Mitchell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Haafke v. Mitchell, 347 N.W.2d 381, 1984 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 1100 (iowa 1984).

Opinions

LARSON, Justice.

Robert Haafke was killed in an automobile accident allegedly resulting from the intoxication of his host driver caused, or contributed to, by these defendants. This suit was based upon Iowa’s dram shop act, Iowa Code section 123.92, and traditional principles of common-law liability. Joined as defendants were Ray V. Mitchell, a liquor licensee, as well as Garvis, Backman, Quade, and Saunders, his employees, the Kingsburys as owners of the tavern property, and Merchants Mutual Bonding Company, surety on the licensee’s dram shop bond. Actual and exemplary damages were demanded from all defendants.

The district court, concluding that Iowa’s dram shop statute preempts the field of civil liability, dismissed all the claims based upon common law and held that the dram [383]*383shop act, directed at “any licensee or per-mittee,” precludes a direct suit against a surety on a licensee’s bond. It also struck all claims for exemplary damages and struck the plaintiffs’ claim for “grief, mental anguish, remorse and humiliation.” We affirm in part and reverse in part.

The plaintiffs alleged that their son, Robert Haafke, and a companion, defendant Chuck Miller, went to the Sugar Bowl Tavern on the evening of the accident. Miller was under the “legal age” of 19 (Iowa Code section 123.3(33)) and was intoxicated at the time, facts that the plaintiffs allege were known to the employees who nevertheless served liquor to Miller. They also allege that the defendants knew or should have known that Miller had a propensity to “behave irrationally” when drunk, that he had a high-speed car and would likely be driving it when he left the Sugar Bowl that night. They also alleged that the defendant Mitchell, operator of the Sugar Bowl Tavern, was a Class C Beer Permit holder and was bonded by the defendant Merchants Mutual Bonding Company as surety-

The Sugar Bowl, they allege, had catered to youthful patrons on the night of the accident, by running a “dollar pitcher” special and permitted participation in a "quarter game” in which the losers were required to become intoxicated. The Sugar Bowl was well known by all of the defendants to be a “hang-out” for underage patrons and that it catered in particular to a trade by underage customers, according to the petition. (It should be noted that the legal age for drinking is 19, Iowa Code section 123.3(33), whereas the age of majority is 18 for other purposes. See Iowa Code § 599.1. Because most cases dealing with sale of intoxicants to underage customers are couched in terms of their being “minors,” we will use that term in this opinion, although there is a difference. We also note that the sales to Miller are variously referred to as sales of liquor and of beer. There is no record to establish which was actually served, and it makes no difference for our purposes. For the sake of uniformity, we will assume the sales were liquor sales.)

Following their stay at the Sugar Bowl, Miller and Haafke left in Miller’s car. Miller was driving. The car struck a tree, killing Haafke. Miller lived and although he is a party to the suit, the issues pertaining to him are not involved in this interlocutory appeal.

I. The Issues.

At the outset, we have difficulty in determining just what the issues are on appeal. The plaintiffs’ brief is of little help. Their brief states the two issues relating to liability as follows: (1) “The trial court erred in holding that anyone may serve liquor to a minor except licensees and permittees under the Iowa dram shop act, [section] 123.-92” and (2) that it erred “in holding that anyone may serve liquor to a minor under the Sioux City Municipal Code [section] 4.32.180.”

The district court did not rule “anyone” may serve liquor; it ruled only that, as a matter of law, certain defendants could not be held liable for doing so. From examination of the appellants’ brief, on the issues of liability, this appears to be their argument: that violations of state statutes and a Sioux City ordinance, which prohibit sales to minors and to intoxicated persons, give rise to common-law liability of all of the defendants (including the bonding company and the owners of the premises) “without the aid or interference of the dram shop act.” The thrust of the argument seems to be that, contrary to the district court’s ruling, common-law liability may be predicated upon a violation of the criminal statute and is not' preempted as to any of the defendants by the dram shop statute.

We first turn to the claim against Merchants Mutual Bonding Company, surety on the license bond required of Mitchell. See Iowa Code § 123.92. The district court order dismissing as to Merchants gave no specific reasons for its ruling. We note, however, that it cited the case of Cochran v. Lovelace, 209 N.W.2d 130 (Iowa 1973), which had held that a surety could not be' sued directly under the dram shop act, be[384]*384cause it was not a “licensee or permittee” within its terms. The plaintiffs do not ask us to overrule Cochran or to distinguish it. Even under the broad reading which we have accorded the appellants’ brief in order to identify the issues, we cannot find that they have preserved any issues as to the dismissal of Merchants. We deem the issue waived. See Iowa R.App.P. 14(a)(3). As to defendants Merle Kingsbury and Lucille Kingsbury, a fair reading of the petition as amended indicates the claim against them is based solely upon their ownership of the premises involved. No argument or authority is submitted on appeal to support such a claim, and we deem this issue waived as well. Id.

We túrn then to the issues remaining in this appeal. In addition to the issue of the common-law liability discussed above, two issues are raised as to damages: May exemplary damages be recovered from the defendants under either the dram shop statute or common law; and may damages for “grief, mental anguish, remorse and humiliation” be recovered under either our statute on wrongful death damages, Iowa Code section 613.15, or the dram shop act itself. We address the liability issue first.

II. The Common-Law Claim in General.

Plaintiffs allege that all of the defendants are liable under common law because the sale of beer here was “careless, heedless, wanton and malicious” and was illegal under two statutes, Iowa Code section 123.-49(1) (sale to intoxicated persons) and section 123.47 (sale to minors). The defendants respond that, as to a licensee, the dram shop act is the exclusive remedy. Further, they claim that as to all of the other defendants, there is no remedy at all because the dram shop act preempts the entire field of tort liability for illegal or negligent sale of intoxicating beverages.

The dram shop act, Iowa Code section 123.92 provides in part:

123.92 Civil liability applicable to sale or gift of beer or intoxicants by licensees.

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Bluebook (online)
347 N.W.2d 381, 1984 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 1100, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/haafke-v-mitchell-iowa-1984.