Murray v. Cottrell

141 N.E. 524, 80 Ind. App. 521, 1923 Ind. App. LEXIS 168
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 22, 1923
DocketNo. 11,597
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 141 N.E. 524 (Murray v. Cottrell) 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
Murray v. Cottrell, 141 N.E. 524, 80 Ind. App. 521, 1923 Ind. App. LEXIS 168 (Ind. Ct. App. 1923).

Opinion

McMahan, C. J.

Appellee recovered judgment against appellant for $1,500 on account of personal injuries received in a collision between appellee’s buggy and an automobile driven by appellant. The only error assigned relates to the overruling of appellant’s motion for a new trial.

No question is raised as to the sufficiency of the evidence. to sustain the verdict. Appellant however contends that the damages assessed by the jury are excessive. In this connection appellant insists appellee was not materially injured or damaged—that he is malingering. Appellee testified that his left leg was cut and bruised; that he had scratches and bruises on his right [523]*523leg and body; that he never suffered.with pain in his legs before the accident; that since the accident he has suffered all the time; that he can’t rest at night and has pain in left leg when he tries to work; that he can’t do a day’s work because of the pain; that it was three or four weeks after the accident before the cut place healed. Other witnesses, including appellee’s father and mother, testified concerning the effect of the injuries. Six physicians, some' of whom were appointed by the court to examine appellee, testified as to the nature and extent of the injuries. None of .the testimony of these physicians is set out in appellant’s statement of the evidence. «

Without entering into a discussion of the evidence relative to the extent of appellee’s injuries, we will in the absence of the testimony of the physicians who examined appellee as to the nature and extent of such injuries, assume that the testimony of such witnesses when considered with the testimony of the other witnesses was sufficient to justify the jury in fixing appellee’s damages at the amount named in the verdict.

Appellant complains of instruction No. 1, given at the request of appellee, wherein the substance of the complaint was set out. The court in this instruction told the jury that it was alleged in the complaint that appellee had been permanently disabled and still suffered severe pain preventing him from engaging in manual labor and causing him to incur an expense of $100 for medicine.

Appellee was a -minor when this action was commenced, and appellant contends that there was no evidence that he had been emancipated; that his earnings belonged to his father and that it was error for the court to refer to the allegation relative to the disability of appellee to engage in manual labor. At. the [524]*524request of appellant, the court instructed the jury that appellee was not entitled to recover anything because of money expended for medicine. The court in another instruction relating to the measure of damages correctly informed the jury that, in fixing the amount of such damages, it could take into consideration the extent of his injuries, the bodily pain and suffering theretofore endured, if any, and such pain, if any, that he might thereafter suffer, and if the jury found that his injuries were permanent, it might also consider his loss, if any, because of the permanent impairment óf his physical powers.

No instruction was given the jury in relation to appelpellee’s right to recover for loss of time during his minority. Appellee was over twenty-one years of age at the time of the trial. If appellant had tendered an instruction to the effect that appellee could not recover anything because of loss of time or earning capacity during his minority in the absence of any evidence that he had been emancipated, the court doubtless would have given the same. We do not think that appellant’s contention that the instruction as given was misleading in that the jury was thereby given to understand that the allegation in reference to medical expenses and loss of earning power authorized a recovery for such expenses and loss during the period of appellee’s minority.

In instruction No. 9, the court told the jury that upon the issue of contributory negligence, the burden was on appellant to establish by a fair preponderance of all the evidence in the case, that appellee was guilty of contributory negligence, and that, unless appellant b.ad done this, its finding should be in favor of appellee upon that issue. Appellant insists that the court erred in giving this instruction and in support of this contention cites City of Indianapolis v. Cauley (1905), 164 [525]*525Ind. 304, 73 N. E. 691; Indianapolis St. R. Co. v. Taylor (1902), 158 Ind. 274, 63 N. E. 456, and other similar cases.

This instruction, when considered in'connection with the other instructions given, is not subject to the objection urged by appellant. The jury, in a number of instructions, were clearly informed that, in determining whether appellee was guilty of contributory negligence, it should look to the whole of the evidence, and if it found from all the evidence that appellee had been guilty of contributory negligence he could not recover. In fact, the instruction now under consideration clearly told the jury that in passing upon the question all the evidence in the case should be considered. On the authority of New Castle Bridge Co. v. Doty (1906), 168 Ind. 259, 79 N. E. 485, we hold there was no error in giving this instruction. See, also, Town of Winamac v. Stout (1905), 165 Ind. 365, 75 N. E. 158, 651.

The court, after having called the attention of the jury to the statute which provides that no person shall drive or . operate a motor vehicle upon a public highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having regard to the traffic and the use of the way or so as to endanger the life or limb or injure the property of any person, instructed the jury that the statute also provided that if the rate of speed of a motor vehicle driven on a public highway in going around a corner or curve in the highway where the operator’s view of the road traffic is obstructed, exceeds six miles an hour, such rate of speed shall be prima facie evidence that the person operating such vehicle was driving at a rate of speed greater than is reasonable, having regard to the traffic and use of the road.

Appellant contends that: (1) There was no evidence that he was driving his automobile in excess of six [526]*526miles an hour in going around a corner or curve; (2) there was no evidence tending to show that the rate of speed when he was going around the corner or curve was the proximate cause of the accident; and (3) that the complaint did not present any issue as to the rate of the speed of his automobile when going around a corner or curve.

We cannot agree with appellant in these contentions. The collision occurred between 8:30 and 9 p. m.

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Bluebook (online)
141 N.E. 524, 80 Ind. App. 521, 1923 Ind. App. LEXIS 168, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/murray-v-cottrell-indctapp-1923.