Jones v. McConnell

7 La. App. 432, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 277
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 10, 1927
DocketNo. 3100
StatusPublished

This text of 7 La. App. 432 (Jones v. McConnell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jones v. McConnell, 7 La. App. 432, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 277 (La. Ct. App. 1927).

Opinion

REYNOLDS, J.

Plaintiff sued defendant under the Workmen’s Compensation Act for $14.04 a week for a period of 300 weeks beginning January 3, 1927, with legal interest on each installment from its maturity until paid, and for the further sum of $250.00 for medical fees, alleging that he was employed by defendant at a daily wage of $3.60 and working six days in the week, and that on the date named, while performing duties in the course of his employment, carrying building materials down a runway in an excavation, his right limb, below the knee, was caught in a shafting which crossed the runway, tearing and bruising certain muscles, ligaments and tendons of his said right limb to such an extent as to temporarily totally disable him to perform work of a reasonable character.

The defense was a general denial.

On these issues the case was tried and there was judgment in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant for compensation for two weeks at the rate of $14.04 a week with legal interest thereon from January 10, 1927, and for the further sum of $2.70 for medical expenses incurred by plaintiff and for the costs of suit, and the plaintiff appealed.

OPINION

Only issues of fact involved are presented, namely, the nature of the disability caused by the accident to plaintiff [433]*433and the amount of medical expenses incurred by him therefor.

Plaintiff, J. J. Jones, testified (evidence, pages 2, 7, 10, 11);

“Q. Mr. Jones, what were you doing on the 3rd day of January, 1927?
“A. I was toting material * * * and in going in and out there have to stoop over, stoop under the water pipe, * * * and in stooping over caught my clothes, caught me and most jerked me into this shaft.
“Q. What part of the shaft caught you —what part of your body was caught?
“A. Caught me on the calf of my leg.
“Q. Right leg?
“A. Yes, sir. The set screw was the first thing that hit the leg, right below the knee. I think was the first thing that hit my leg and most jerked me into the shafting.
£ * *
“Q. Were you taken to the hospital?
“A. Yes, sir.
sfc ❖ %
“Q. Who took you there?
“A. Mr. McConnell.
“Q. How long were you there?
“A. Stayed there I don’t suppose more than an hour; taken me back home.
“Q. You stayed at the hospital about an hour and th'en they took you back home?
“A. Something like that.
“Q. Did you go to bed when you got home?
“A. Laying around.
“Q. How long did you stay in bed?
“A. Stayed in bed, off and on, laying around that way, something like about a week or ten days, up and down.
“Q. Have you paid your medical bills?
“A. No, sir.
“Q. Who paid for it?
“A. The company, X suppose.
“Q. You have not been put to any expense?
“A. No, sir.
“Q. Por doctor and medical treatment?
“A. Yes, I bought a little stuff to put on my leg myself; the doctor recommended that I put it on; I bought a rubber elastic.
“Q. That is all you bought?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. How much did you pay for the medicine?
“A. I think, if I am not mistaken, about, I think it was, don’t know, won’t be positive. I think I bought ten or twelve boxes of epsom salts.
“Q. How much did you pay for each box?
“A. Ten cents.
“Q. How much did you pay for the elastic?
“A. Dollar and a half.
“Q. All you have spent on account of this accident amounts to two dollars seventy cents.
“A. Yes, sir; about all I have paid out.
“Q. The rest of the treatment was furnished by the company?
“A. Yes, sir.”

On this testimony the court rendered judgment as stated.

At the time of the trial the plaintiff was suffering from varicose veins.

Doctor C. H. Potts, called by plaintiff, testified (evidence, pages 12-14):

“Q, What is your conclusion as to this case?
“A. Well, I think he has a considerable amount of varicose veins, both above and below the knee, and the majority of which, the largest of which, above his knee form a pretty fair size sac or vein cyst. * * *
“Q. To what extent is he affected with varicose veins now?
“A. Considerable; he has quite large varicose veins, that is what I brought out a minute ago, the largest one of which is this cyst, the largest varicose vein above the knee and extending below.”

Doctor A. J. Thomas, also called by the plaintiff, testified (evidence, page 23):

“Q. What was his condition upon your first examination, doctor?
“A. * * * Diagnosis made was varicose veins and peri phlebitis of right leg; periostits of middle third of tibia and fibula of right leg. * * *”

Doctor A. P. Crain, called by defendant, testified (evidence, pages 32, 33):

[434]*434“Q. Did you examine the plaintiff in this case?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. Doctor, please state what you found to be his condition?
“A. * * * Mr. Jones has extreme varicosity, that is, varicose veins, in the veins of both limbs, extend above the knee, and the leg that was not hurt is almost as bad as the one injured. * * *”

And Doctors O. C. Rigby and W. S. Harmon, also called by defendant, testified to the same effect.

The testimony offered by plaintiff and defendant makes certain that at the time of the trial plaintiff was suffering from varicose veins and nothing else; and the only question to he decided by the court is, were the varicose veins the result of the accident?

Plaintiff’s witness, C. H. Potts, testified (evidence, page 16):

“Q. Do you think that the injury which he received caused these varicose veins?
“A. I do.
“Q. You don’t think he had them before that?
“A. May have had some, yes, but not to the degree he has got now.
“Q.

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Bluebook (online)
7 La. App. 432, 1927 La. App. LEXIS 277, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-mcconnell-lactapp-1927.