Henneman v. McBride

34 Pa. D. & C.3d 458, 1984 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 226
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Cumberland County
DecidedApril 23, 1984
Docketno. 3011 Civil 1983
StatusPublished

This text of 34 Pa. D. & C.3d 458 (Henneman v. McBride) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Cumberland County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Henneman v. McBride, 34 Pa. D. & C.3d 458, 1984 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 226 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1984).

Opinion

BAYLEY, J.,

This trespass action claims damages for injuries resulting from an automobile accident in which plaintiffs’ vehicle was struck in the rear by a car being operated by an unknown driver who had recently stolen it from defendant McBride. Plaintiffs complaint alleges the following:

1. On March 20, 1982, defendant Michael L. McBride, was the owner of a high performance 1976 Plymouth Fury Sedan.

2. At approximately 6:30 p.m., on that date, defendant parked his vehicle in an alley along the Cumberland Fire Company property at 121 East Louther Street, Carlisle, and left the vehicle unattended, unlocked, and with the keys in the ignition and the motor running.

3. When defendant exited the firehouse at approximately 6:35 p.m., he discovered that his automobile had been stolen.

4. At approximately 6:50 p.m., the same evening, James R. Henneman, accompanied by his wife Lorrie, was operating his vehicle out of a driveway and onto Route 34, a short distance from Carlisle.

5. After turning onto Route 34, the stolen vehicle approached plaintiffs from the rear and struck them. The stolen car failed to stop and subsequently was recovered at approximately 5:10 a.m. the following morning. The identity of the thief was never discovered.

Paragraph 17 of the complaint alleges the negligence of defendant-owner, Michael L. McBride, consisted of:

“(a) failing to realize that the ownership of a high performance vehicle such as the vehicle in question entails additional responsibility to keep said vehicle [460]*460secure and to prevent it from falling into the hands of irresponsible, careless, wreckless (sic), or feloni-ously minded persons; (b) leaving said high performance vehicle unlocked, unattended, with the keys in the ignition and the motor running at a place where it was easily stolen; (c) failing to realize that the accident rate for stolen vehicles is approximately 200 times the normal accident; (d) negligence per se — violation of the provisions” of 75 Pa. C.S. §3701.

Defendant has filed a preliminary objection to plaintiffs complaint in the form of a demurrer, claiming that the complaint does not set forth a valid cause of action under Pennsylvania law.

In Liney v. Chestnut Motors, Inc., 421 Pa. 26, 218 A.2d 336 (1966), the Supreme Court sustained the entry of a demurrer on the following stated facts:

“The defendant operates an automobile sales agency and garage. About ten o’clock a.m. on the day involved, a customer’s automobile was delivered to the garage for repairs. The defendant’s employees allowed the automobile to remain outside the building, double-parked in the street and with the key in the ignition. About three hours later, it was stolen by an adult stranger, who then drove it around the block in such a careless manner that it mounted a sidewalk, struck the plaintiff, a pedestrian thereon, causing her serious injury. Defendant’s garage was located in a Philadelphia area experiencing a high and increasing number of automobile thefts in the immediate preceding months.”

The Supreme Court commented that even asssuming that defendant’s employees were negligent in permitting the automobile to remain outside on the street under the circumstances described, it was clear that the defendant could not have antici[461]*461pated and foreseen that this carelessness of its employees would have resulted in the harm plaintiffs suffered. It further noted that even if defendant should have foreseen the likelihood of the theft of the automobile, nothing existed to put it on notice that the thief would be an incompetent or careless driver.

The court held that any negligence on part of defendant was only a remote cause upon which no action would lie. The lower court’s demurrer was sustained because the remoteness of the causal connection between defendant’s negligence and plaintiff’s injury was sufficiently clear to remove the issue of causation from a jury as a matter of law.

Plaintiffs maintain that they have stated a cause of action pursuant to Anderson v. Bushong Pontiac Company, 404 Pa. 382, 171 A.2d 771 (1961), In Anderson, defendant was a used car dealer. On a Friday, a 14 year old boy stole the keys from a Pontiac Sedan. This boy, and other boys of like age had made a habit of playing in and about the cars in this used car lot. The used car dealer reported the theft of the keys to the police, but did nothing to remove the Pontiac from the lot, or make the car inoperable. On Sunday, just two days later, when the lot was unattended, another 14 year old boy came onto the lot and drove off in the Pontiac using the stolen keys. The thief was involved in an accident which seriously injured a pedestrian. The Supreme Court reversed a demurrer entered by the lower court, stating:

“Herein the defendant knew the keys of one of its cars located on an open lot had been stolen. Starting the motor by one who gained possession of the keys was a simple matter, even for a teenager. It also had every reason to know that children of immature years frequented this lot and used it for recreational [462]*462purposes at or about the time of the theft. Despite this knowledge, it saw fit to do nothing except report the theft to the police. The car was permitted to remain on an open and unattended lot. After the keys had been stolen and such fact was known, it did not require much imagination to realize that the car itself might well be next on the list. Without the car, the keys were insignificant. To prevent the car’s theft and operation required only a very simple mechanical operation. That it might well fall into possession and control of an incompetent teenager was not difficult to visualize. But no safety precautions ensued. Whether or not this constituted the exercise of reasonable prudence, under all of the circumstances presented, cannot be decided as a matter of law.”

In Liney, the Supreme Court distinguished Anderson by noting that the facts of Anderson “clearly put the defendant in that case on notice, not only that the automobile was likely to be stolen, but also that it was likely to be stolen and operated by an incompetent driver.”1 In the present case, plaintiffs’ counsel acknowledged at oral argument that the facts were such that plaintiffs are unable, in good faith, to plead “specific notice” of any type.

Plaintiffs suggest that we adopt the reasoning of the Supreme Court of Michigan in Davis v. Thornton, 384 Mich. 138, 180 N.W.2d 11 (1970). Davis was a suit against an owner whose car, left with the key in the ignition, was stolen by joy riding minors and caused one death and five severely injured occupants of another car. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendant. The Supreme Court of Michigan reversed, holding that [463]*463defendant’s liability was for the jury to determine, since reasonable men could conclude that leaving the keys in the ignition was not too remote a cause of plaintiffs injuries and that the joy riders intervening acts did not sever the causal connection. Plaintiffs further maintain that a violation of §3701 of the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Code forms a sufficient basis to submit this case to a jury under the Davis rationale.

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Related

Davis v. Thornton
180 N.W.2d 11 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1970)
Liney v. Chestnut Motors, Inc.
218 A.2d 336 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1966)
Grainy Ex Rel. Grainy v. Campbell
425 A.2d 379 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1981)
Anderson v. Bushong Pontiac Co.
171 A.2d 771 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1961)
DeMaine v. Brillhart
303 A.2d 506 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1973)
Whitner v. Lojeski
263 A.2d 889 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1970)
FLICKINGER ESTATE v. Ritsky
305 A.2d 40 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1973)
Kline v. Moyer and Albert
191 A. 43 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1937)

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Bluebook (online)
34 Pa. D. & C.3d 458, 1984 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 226, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/henneman-v-mcbride-pactcomplcumber-1984.