Indianapolis & Cincinnati Traction Co. v. Senour

122 N.E. 772, 71 Ind. App. 10, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 156
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 17, 1919
DocketNo. 9,752
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 122 N.E. 772 (Indianapolis & Cincinnati Traction Co. v. Senour) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Indianapolis & Cincinnati Traction Co. v. Senour, 122 N.E. 772, 71 Ind. App. 10, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 156 (Ind. Ct. App. 1919).

Opinion

Batman, P. J

— This is an action by appellee against appellant to recover damages sustained by her on account of the death of her husband, Alfred Senour, alleged to have been caused by the negligence of appellant. The complaint on which the cause was tried is in two paragraphs. Appellant’s demurrer to each of said paragraphs was overruled. The cause was submitted to a jury for trial, resulting in a verdict for appellee on which a judgment was duly rendered. Appellant filed a motion for a new trial, which [14]*14was overruled, and has assigned the action of the court, in overruling its demurrer to each paragraph of said complaint, and in overruling its motion for a new trial as the errors on which it relies for reversal.

1. Appellee contends that appellant has failed to comply with Buie 22 of tl\e Supreme and Appellate Courts in the preparation of its brief,, by failing to state “under a separate heading of each error relied on, separately numbered propositions or points, stated concisely, and without argument or elaboration, together with the authorities relied on in support of them.” An examination of appellant’s brief discloses that there has been a failure to some extent with reference to separate headings of each error relied on, and separately numbered propositions or points thereunder. This, however, will only have the effect of limiting Our consideration to such propositions or points as are properly stated, and to those 'which, by their wording, clearly indicate the particular error to which they are directed. Moore v. Ohl (1917), 65 Ind. App. 691, 116 N. E. 9; Gwinn v. Hobbs (1917), 72 Ind. App. —, 118 N. E. 155.

■ The first paragraph of the complaint alleges in substance, among other things, that appellant on December 24, 1914, was operating an interurban railroad along and over Prospect street in the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, and that said street was very narrow,* that on said date and previously thereto there was a very deep snow on the ground, and appellant had scraped and plowed said snow from its tracks in said street to the sides thereof, and thereby made it practically impossible to drive a wagon thereon, except by driving upon said railroad tracks; that by reason [15]*15of such fact it had become a custom of all vehicles going along said street to drive upon that portion thereof where said tracks were located, as appellant well knew; that on the evening of said date, while it was dark, appellee’s decedent was driving east on said street in a covered grocery wagon in which' he was seated; that at the same time one of appellant’s cars was being run upon said street in the same direction that said wagon was going; that said car was being operated in a negligent manner, in this, that it had no headlight or light of any kind, and was being run at a high and dangerous rate of speed, to wit, twenty-five miles per hour; that while being so operated, and without warning of any kind, appellant negligently ran said car into, against and upon said wagon so being driven by said decedent, breaking and to a large extent demolishing said wagon, and thereby causing said decedent to be struck and injured by said car or by being thrown in some way so as to strike some object, fracturing his skull, and causing his death; that if appellant had had a lighted headlight upon said car its motorman would have seen the wagon in which said decedent was riding in ample time to have stopped its car and thereby prevented said injury, or to have warned said decedent in time for: him to have escaped the same; that said accident happened by reason of the negligence of appellant, as aforesaid, and without any fault or negligence on the part of said decedent. The second paragraph of complaint is substantially the same as „he first,, except that it alleges that the striking and demolishing of the wagon by appellant’s car caused thé horse attached to the same to become frightened and uncontrollable, and to run away, pulling and drag[16]*16ging said wagon and said decedent, thereby fracturing- said decedent’s skull and causing his death.

2. Appellant presents only two objections to the complaint in its propositions or points, viz.: (1) That neither paragraph of the complaint alleges that the decedent made any attempt to look for an approaching car; (2) that each paragraph of the complaint shows that the decedent was guilty of contributory negligence. The authorities cited by appellant in support of the first point stated above all involve cases which arose and were decided prior to the enactment of §362 Burns 1914, Acts 1899 p. 58. Since the enactment of said section it is not incumbent upon a plaintiff, in an action to recover damages for personal injuries, to allege his own freedom from fault, but a complaint will be good in that respect, unless the fact, of contributory negligence affirmatively appears on the face of the pleading. Evansville, etc., R. Co. v. Berndt (1909), 172 Ind. 697, 88 N. E. 612. This disposes of the first objection stated.

3. Appellant, in making its second objection, relies upon the allegation of the. complaint which shows that the decedent voluntarily chose to drive along and upon appellant’s tracks while in the dark. It is- wellysett-led that the rights of a street railway company- in- operating its cars along a' public street and of the--public in traveling the same are equal, and each are bound to use ordinary care to avoid a collision.

•4. The railway company, however, has the. preferential right to the portion occupied by its tracks. Indianapolis St. R. Co. v. Schmidt (1905), 35 Ind. App. 202, 71 N. E. 663, 72 N. E. 478; Louisville, etc., Traction Co. [17]*17v. Lottich (1915), 59 Ind. App. 426, 106 N. E. 903; Indianapolis St. T. Co. v. Bolin (1906), 39 Ind. App. 169, 78 N. E. 210.

5. It follows that the mere fact that appellee’s decedent entered upon appellant’s tracks in a wagon after dark is not negligence per se. "Whether snch conduct was or was not contributory negligence necessarily depends upon the surrounding circumstances and the attendant care used, and hence we cannot say as a matter of law that the mere fact of his entrance upon the tracks, as alleged, was contributory negligence. The court, therefore, did not err in overruling appellant’s -demurrer to either paragraph of the complaint.

6. Appellant contends that the verdict of the jury is not sustained by sufficient evidence. In support of this contention it claims that the uncontradieted evidence shows that appellee’s decedent at the time he received his injuries was driving along a public street in the dark upon its tracks* in a sparsely settled part of the city, without a -tail light upon his wagon, in violation of a city ordinance in that regard. Based on these facts it asserts that the decedent was guilty of contributory . negligence. We do not agree that the uncontradicted evidence shows the absence of a tail light on the wagon. One of appellee’s witnesses testified that the wagon-passed him a short time before the accident, and that he had a very strong impression that it had such, a light, but he would not be positive. There is also evidence which tends to show that the motorman, without a headlight on the car he was operating, detected the wagon in the dark when it was from 100 to 150 feet in front of him. This would warrant an inference that it carried a tail light, which attracted the motorman’s-attention.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
122 N.E. 772, 71 Ind. App. 10, 1919 Ind. App. LEXIS 156, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/indianapolis-cincinnati-traction-co-v-senour-indctapp-1919.