Hodgdon v. Barr

53 N.W.2d 844, 334 Mich. 60, 1952 Mich. LEXIS 366
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedJune 2, 1952
DocketDocket 4, 5, Calendar 45,194, 45,195
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 53 N.W.2d 844 (Hodgdon v. Barr) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hodgdon v. Barr, 53 N.W.2d 844, 334 Mich. 60, 1952 Mich. LEXIS 366 (Mich. 1952).

Opinion

ShaRpe, J.

Defendants, Stanley M. Barr and Jim Stankye, appeal from 2 judgments in favor of plaintiffs, Catherine Hodgdon and Fred Hodgdon. The judgments are for damages for personal injuries suffered by Catherine Hodgdon in a collision with a taxicab at or near the intersection of Van Dyke and Gratiot avenues in the city of Detroit, on August 27, 1948, about 10:50 a. m.

Gratiot avenue runs in a northeasterly and southwesterly direction, while Van Dyke avenue runs in *62 |a more or less northerly and southerly direction, j There is a traffic light at each corner of the intersecjtion. Yan Dyke avenue has a width of 47 feet; ! Gratiot avenue has a width of 90 feet, with 2 sets i of streetcar tracks in the center of the street.

There is a crosswalk extending across Gratiot avenue. The northerly end of the crosswalk begins approximately 42 feet west of the west curb line of i Yan Dyke avenue, and runs in a southeasterly direction. The crosswalk is perpendicular to the northjwest curb of Gratiot avenue until it reaches the center of Gratiot avenue, when it follows a line .parallel to the curb line of Van Dyke avenue. The crosswalk is approximately 11 feet wide. There is ■a safety zone located to the south of the intersection on Gratiot avenue next to the more southeasterly set of streetcar tracks. The safety zone is just south ,of the crosswalk.

Plaintiff, Catherine Hodgdon, left the Michigan .Bell Telephone office on the northerly side of Gratiot avenue at a point 5 stores west of the intersection .of Van Dyke, with the intention of going to the safety zone to take a Gratiot avenue bus. She walked 'towards Yan Dyke on the northerly side of Gratiot avenue to a point at or near the crosswalk. She made observations of traffic conditions on Gratiot avenue, and with the green light in her favor started to cross the northerly half of Gratiot avenue at a point about 42 feet west of Yan Dyke avenue.

About this time a panel truck was parked on the westerly side of Yan Dyke and north of Gratiot avenue, waiting for the green light; behind the panel truck was a city bus waiting to cross Gratiot avenue- and proceed in a southerly direction on Yan Dyke; behind the city bus was the Checker cab driven by defendant, Stanley M. Barr. When the light turned green for passage on Yan Dyke avenue, the truck proceeded in a southerly direction and turned west *63 on Gratiot avenue. The city bus proceeded on and across Gratiot avenue. Defendant, Stanley M. Barr, moved up behind the truck, followed it around the corner, then stopped when not completely around the corner, then pulled o.ut and proceeded to the left • of the truck and went far enough around the corner to clear the intersection. When the truck approached the crosswalk it stopped and defendant Barr did ;likewise, as people were crossing in a southerly direction on the crosswalk. While making the crossing plaintiff passed in front of a vehicle that was stopped to let pedestrians cross on the crosswalk. !She passed in front of the truck heretofore mentioned, which was also stopped. After passing the second vehicle she was struck by the cab driven by defendant Barr. At this time the cab was traveling at a speed of not to exceed 8 to 10 miles per hour. At the time plaintiff was injured she had reached a, point from 5 or 6 feet to 12 feet north of the northerly car track on Gratiot avenue.

Plaintiff was seriously injured. The cause came-' on for trial, the issues were submitted to a jury who returned a verdict of $10,000 for Catherine Hodgdon, and $2,000 for Fred Hodgdon, her husband, for ex-, penses incurred.

During the trial and at the close of plaintiff’s testimony defendant made a motion for a directed verdict on the theory that plaintiff was guilty of contributory negligence, and a lack of evidence showing defendant Barr guilty of any negligence which was a proximate cause of the injury. The trial court took the motion under advisement under the statute and later denied it. Defendant appeals and urges that the trial court was in error in failing to grant his motion for a directed verdict at the close of plaintiff’s proofs.

*64 The record shows that when' plaintiff entered Gratiot avenue on the crosswalk she had the green light in her favor. Before entering Gratiot avenue she made observations for approaching traffic to her left and to her right. Other pedestrians were crossing ahead of her on the crosswalk. Having in mind that PA 1927, No 318, § 18(a), as amended (CL 1948, §256.318 [Stat Ann 1947 Cum Supp §9.1578]), provides that in making a right turn a driver shall “approach such intersection in the lane for traffic nearest to the right-hand side of the highway, and in turning shall keep as closely as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the highway” and that the Traffic Ordinance No 115-D, §§ 14(b), .16, of the city of Detroit, provide:

“Seo. 14(b). Green alone, or ‘go’. Vehicular traffic facing the signal may proceed straight through or turn right or left unless a sign at such place prohibits either such turn: Provided, that vehicular traffic shall yield the right-of-way to other vehicles ¡lawfully within the intersection and to pedestrians lawfully within a crosswalk at the time such signal is exhibited. Pedestrians facing the green signal may proceed across the highway within any marked or unmarked crosswalk. * * *
“Sec. 16. Operators may make a right turn at all times from the moving traffic lane nearest the right curb when proceeding with traffic, except where prohibited by traffic control devices or traffic officers, provided that the operator shall yield the right of way to pedestrians lawfully within the crosswalk. The operator shall not make a right turn when facing a red traffic control signal unless such turn is permitted by right-turn arrow, or other traffic control devices.”

We are of the opinion that the contributory negligence of plaintiff, Catherine Hodgdon, presented a question of fact to be submitted to -the trier of facts.

*65 On th¿ question of the negligence of defendant-Barr, the court gave the following instructions:

“What are the duties that were imposed upon these parties ? I think the logical order to take up for that discussion is what was the duty of the driver' of the taxicab, Mr. Barr. He had imposed upon him 3 duties which I think are involved in this case. First, the State statute provides that when a driver of a motor vehicle is making a right-hand turn at an-intersection, he must make it from the right-hand avenue or traffic lane of the street off from which he. is going,_ and he must make it into the right-hand lane available to traffic on the street into which he is turning. Therefore, in this case, to apply this, case to the undisputed facts as set forth by the de-t fendant, he was going south on Yan Dyke avenue.He was behind a truck, and on his testimony, a city bus. They stopped on a red light at the north line-of Gratiot avenue. The light changed.

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Bluebook (online)
53 N.W.2d 844, 334 Mich. 60, 1952 Mich. LEXIS 366, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hodgdon-v-barr-mich-1952.