Payne v. Burnett

133 N.E. 147, 78 Ind. App. 64, 1921 Ind. App. LEXIS 213
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 9, 1921
DocketNo. 11,021
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 133 N.E. 147 (Payne v. Burnett) 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
Payne v. Burnett, 133 N.E. 147, 78 Ind. App. 64, 1921 Ind. App. LEXIS 213 (Ind. Ct. App. 1921).

Opinion

NICHOLS, J.

— Action for personal injuries received at a railroad crossing.

It is averred in the complaint, in substance, that appellant’s railroad runs into Dearborn county, Indiana, and is named the Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern Railroad Company. On November 2, 1918, appellee was driving a farm wagon drawn by two horses upon a public highway which crosses the tracks of said railroad at Cold Springs Station, Dearborn county, Indiana. There were three tracks of railroad over which said highway crosses consisting of one side track on the north, one north main track, and one south main track. Appellant on said day had carelessly and negligently failed to place over said tracks a proper and safe crossing, but was maintaining an unsafe and defective crossing consisting of planks of uneven length and thickness and which were old, rotten, split and broken and placed in an irregular position so that instead of being smooth said, crossing was rough, irregular and dangerous. Some of the planks were higher than the tracks and some were lower, and by reason of the defective condi[67]*67tion of the crossing appellee was compelled to watch his team when crossing said tracks in order to go over the same safely. Appellee on said day was driving south on said highway, and as he approached said crossing looked in both directions and listened for any train that might be approaching over said tracks, and stopped his team twenty feet north of the side track at which time a freight train was going westward over said north main track. After said freight train had passed over said crossing, appellee approached the same, carefully looking and listening for any other train that might be approaching said crossing, and neither hearing nor seeing any train carefully drove his team on to said track and had passed over the side track and the north maip track, and his wagon was upon the south main track when appellant operating a locomotive and train of passenger cars, ran the same along said south track without sounding a whistle or ringing a bell, and failed to give any warning of the approach of said train. ' Said locomotive struck appellee’s wagon in which he was riding, throwing the wagon from the track and plaintiff from the wagon and plaintiff was thereby “bruised, wounded and injured, that the bone in one of plaintiff’s legs was broken between the knee and the ankle joint, that plaintiff’s head was bruised and that one of plaintiff’s arms was bruised and injured, that plaintiff on account of being thrown from the said wagon was rendered unconscious and that plaintiff was thereby caused to suffer great pain both of body and mind and that the injury to his leg is permanent.” Said train was running at sixty miles per hour, and it was negligent so to operate it at such a high rate of speed for the reason that persons going south could only see westward a short distance from the crossing until upon said south track.' The crossing runs diagonally across the tracks and, on account of it being a rough crossing and the [68]*68fact that appellee’s team required constant attention because of such defective condition, it was the duty of appellant to slacken the speed of its train and to give signals as required by law. Damages are prayed in the sum of $5,000.

There was a motion to make the complaint more specific which was overruled, a demurrer to such complaint which was overruled, and thereupon an answer in general denial. There was a trial by jury resulting in a verdict in favor of appellee in the sum of $1,000. After motion for a new trial which was overruled, appellant prosecutes this appeal, assigning as error the action of the court: (1) In overruling appellant’s motion to make the complaint more specific; (2) in overruling appellant’s demurrer to the complaint; (8) in overruling appellant’s motion for a new trial.

1,2. Appellant insists that the court erred in overruling its motion to make the complaint more specific, but it is sufficiently specific distinctly to inform appellee of what it is required to meet, and this is all that is required. Alleman v. Wheeler (1885), 101 Ind. 141; Pittsburgh, etc., R. Co. V. Simons (1907), 168 Ind. 333, 79 N. E. 911; Cleveland, etc., R. Co. v. Jones (1912), 51 Ind. App. 45, 99 N. E. 503; Kinmore v. Cresse (1913), 53 Ind. App. 693, 102 N. E. 403.

3,4. The complaint was sufficient to withstand appellant’s demurrer. It is expressly charged in the complaint that the crossing was defective thereby making it difficult and dangerous to cross; that appellant was running its train at an excessive rate of speed without sounding the whistle or ringing the bell or giving any warning and that appellee’s injuries, losses and damages were caused solely by the negligence and carelessness of appellant as above set forth, and without fault on the part of appellee. Each act of negligence is sufficiently charged, and united they produced the [69]*69injury. This is sufficient. Baldwin Piano Co. v. Allen (1918), 187 Ind. 315, 118 N. E. 305. It appears by the complaint that appellee, though required to watch his team because of the defective condition of the crossing, was also looking and listening for a train as he approached the crossing. This does not necessarily show contributory negligence. It was not error to overrule the demurrer to the complaint.

5. It appears by the evidence that appellee had stopped his team about twenty feet north of the first track waiting for the freight train to pass. To the west there was a deep cut and abrupt curve with a high bank all of which obstructed his view during the time he was moving forward attempting to cross. The crossing was rough, uneven and narrow, and the phnking rotten and split, which condition required appellee to watch his team in order to cross safely. When the freight was 150 yards to the west he looked and listened and he saw no train, and he moved forward watching his team and looking and listening and when he was on the south track he first knew of the train that hit him then about seventy-five feet away coming at high speed. This evidence together with all the other evidence presents questions of fact for the jury, both as to appellant’s negligence and appellee’s contributory negligence, and the jury has found against appellant on these questions, and the verdict will not be disturbed.

6. Appellant contends that there was error in giving instructions Nos. 2, 4, 6, 9 and 10, requested by appellee, and in giving each of such instructions. Instruction No. 2 tells the jury that if it should find that the highway crossing was extra dangerous then it was the duty of appellant to exercise reasonable care in running its trains over said highway crossing to prevent accident to travelers. Appellant complains of this [70]*70instruction because it says that there was no issue as to the extra dangerous condition of the crossing, nor was there any proof as to the same. But in this we cannot agree with appellant’s contention, for from the condition of the highway both as averred in the complaint and as shown by the proof, the jury might reasonably infer that the crossing was dangerous. While we do not approve of the use of the expression “extra dangerous,” we do not think that' its use under the averments of the complaint and under the evidence in this case constitutes reversible error.

7. Instruction No.

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Bluebook (online)
133 N.E. 147, 78 Ind. App. 64, 1921 Ind. App. LEXIS 213, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/payne-v-burnett-indctapp-1921.