Merrell v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

276 S.W.3d 117, 2009 Tex. App. LEXIS 414, 2008 WL 5212852
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 23, 2009
Docket06-07-00122-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 276 S.W.3d 117 (Merrell v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Merrell v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 276 S.W.3d 117, 2009 Tex. App. LEXIS 414, 2008 WL 5212852 (Tex. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinions

OPINION

Opinion by

Justice CARTER.

Charles T. Merrell, Sr., and Jane Cer-verny 1 (collectively the Parents) bring this appeal of the trial court’s order granting Wal-Mart, Inc., summary judgment.2 This is a products liability suit based on an allegedly defective halogen torchiere lamp which may have caused the wrongful death of Charles Thomas Merrell, II (Charles II), Merrell and Cerverny’s son. Charles II had just graduated from Austin College and had been hired as a stockbroker for A.G. Edwards’ Paris, Texas, office. The house Charles II rented caught fire and burned, killing Charles II and his girlfriend, Latosha Gibson. The fire originated near the recliner in the living room. The fire report indicated the cause of the fire was unknown. The halogen torchiere lamp, which the Parents allege was the cause of the fire, was located next to the recliner. Wal-Mart denied the lamp was the cause of the fire. An alternative cause of the fire, which Wal-Mart alleges was more likely the cause, was that a dropped marihuana joint or cigarette caused the fire. Both victims had marihuana in them systems at the time of their deaths. The trial court granted Wal-Mart’s no-evidence and traditional motions for summary judgment.

The Parents complain on appeal that the trial court erred in granting Wal-Mart’s summary judgment motion. Wal-Mart raises a counter-issue alleging the trial [122]*122court erred in admitting some of the summary judgment evidence. We conclude the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the summary judgment evidence. The trial court, though, did err in granting Wal-Mart’s motion for summary judgment. The Parents presented more than a scintilla of evidence concerning each element challenged by Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart did not establish it was entitled to judgment as a matter of law. We reverse the judgment of the trial court.

Facts

When Charles II graduated with honors from Austin College, he accepted a position as a stockbroker with A.G. Edwards in Paris, Texas. Charles II and Gibson rented a home in Honey Grove, Texas, near Paris, Texas. In October 2000, Charles II began a nine-week course to prepare for the stockbroker’s examination and asked Merrell to “go and buy a floor lamp so he could study because the lighting was so bad in that house.” The two went together to purchase the lamp at Wal-Mart. Although Merrell could not remember the specific Wal-Mart store at which the lamp was purchased, Merrell testified he was positive the lamp was purchased at a Wal-Mart store because he “never shopped anywhere but Wal-Mart.” Charles II selected a lamp which may have been a halogen torchiere lamp.3 Merrell paid around $30.00 for the lamp. Because the lamp was a floor model, Merrell did not receive a box, any of the accompanying warnings, or instructions for safe operation. Even though the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (the Commission) required all retailers to make available a free wire mesh guard for all halogen torchiere lamps, Wal-Mart did not provide a wire mesh guard with the lamp. Merrell testified there was a warning sticker on the cord, but could not remember what the sticker said. Charles II took the lamp home and placed it by his recliner in the living room.

During the early morning hours of December 2, 2000, a fire started in the living room while Charles II and Gibson were sleeping. The fire engulfed the entire house. Neither Charles II nor Gibson were able to escape, and both died of smoke inhalation. The toxicology report detected cannabinoids in the blood of both victims at the time of their deaths. It is uncontested that the fire originated in the general vicinity of the recliner. The recliner was completely consumed in the fire and was more extensively consumed by the fire than any other piece of furniture. The fire burned through the ceiling approximately two feet from the recliner.

The fire inspectors concluded the “exact cause of the fire could not be determined.” Although photographs of the fire were preserved, the lamp was inadvertently disposed of and has not been recovered.4 In the fire report, the fire inspectors noted that the victims were known to leave can[123]*123dies unattended. Mickey Holmes, the chief of police for Honey Grove, testified there were candleholders located on a small table between the lamp and the sofa.5 The lamp had been warped from the heat, but was upright and plugged in. Holmes estimated the height of the lamp would be approximately six feet. Holmes testified that a bong6 and ashtrays were found in the house.7 One of the ashtrays was on the small table with the candlehold-ers. Larry Phillips, a lieutenant with the Honey Grove Police Department, testified they found “quite a bit” of drug paraphernalia. The police found a bong, several pipes, and several joints located in ashtrays. Phillips could not recall if any of the pipes were found in the living room. Phillips testified the joints and blunts were found in ashtrays. Although several of the ashtrays were collected and preserved as evidence, the ashtray located in the living room was not preserved. Phillips remembered a pole lamp with a bowl on top, but could not recall whether it was a halogen or incandescent lamp.

Clinton D. Williams, the fire marshall, conducted his investigation approximately four days after the fire. Although he did not find any candleholders during his investigation of the fire, Williams testified he had been advised “the subjects that lived in the house did burn candles.” Williams testified the table “was charred heaviest on the side that would have been up against the chair.” Williams opined the candles were not a likely cause of the fire based on the charring of the table. When asked whether bulb fragments from an exploding halogen lamp could have caused a smoldering fire in the recliner, the fire marshall stated, “Could be a possibility. I haven’t seen anything that would discount or prove either way.” The fire marshall testified a dropped cigarette butt, joint, or ashes could have caused a smoldering fire, and he could not rule out smoking materials as a potential cause of the fire. In the fire marshall’s opinion, the chair likely smoldered for a couple of hours before it ignited into flames. The fire marshall based this opinion on “the patterns, the Sheetrock, and the wood and the charring” as well as the burn-through in the ceiling above the reclining chair. The lamp had been disassembled by the time the fire marshall conducted his investigation. The pieces of the lamp were leaning against the wall. The fire marshall did not investigate whether the lamp was a halogen lamp or what the wattage of the bulb was. The fire marshall could not recall whether he examined the bowl of the lamp.

Wal-Mart retained two fire experts: Richard Dyer, the Fire Chief for Kansas City, Missouri, and Lentini. The Parents originally hired David Dallas as an expert. Shortly before summary judgment, the Parents retained Dr. Craig Beyler as an expert and removed Dallas’ name as a testifying expert. Both sides agree Dallas’ testimony is no longer admissible, since Dallas had been delisted, and should not be considered by this Court. Because both sides stipulate Dallas’ deposition testimony is inadmissible, we will assume the deposition testimony is inadmissible for the purpose of this appeal.8 About the [124]

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276 S.W.3d 117, 2009 Tex. App. LEXIS 414, 2008 WL 5212852, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/merrell-v-wal-mart-stores-inc-texapp-2009.