Presswood v. Jones

381 S.W.2d 485, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2744
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 24, 1964
DocketNo. 3901
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 381 S.W.2d 485 (Presswood v. Jones) 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
Presswood v. Jones, 381 S.W.2d 485, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2744 (Tex. Ct. App. 1964).

Opinion

COLLINGS, Justice.

Dorothy Jones and her husband brought suit against Lloyd Presswood seeking damages for injuries to property and to the person of Mrs. Jones, alleged to have been sustained in an automobile accident. The trial was before a jury which found the defendant guilty of acts of negligence proximately causing the damages sustained by plaintiffs. The jury further found that Mrs. Jones was not guilty of the various acts of contributory negligence alleged by defendant. Based upon the verdict, judgment was rendered for plaintiffs. Lloyd Presswood has appealed.

The evidence shows that on April 22, 1963, at about 8:30 a. m., Dorothy Jones was on her way to work driving her car West on North 6th Street in the city of Abilene, Texas. Her three months’ old baby was lying beside her on the front seat of the car. Pine Street, which runs North and South, had two traffic lanes in each direction and the evidence shows that there was a traffic light at the intersection of Pine and North 6th Streets. As Mrs. Jones approached the intersection of North 6th and Pine there was a car directly in front of her proceeding West on 6th Street and another car was behind her. There were no cars proceeding East on 6th Street at or near the intersection. To appellee’s left there were two cars on Pine Street facing North waiting for the light to change before crossing the intersection. Appellant Presswood was at the time proceeding South on Pine [487]*487Street, and collided with Mrs. Jones while she was in the intersection.

The jury found that the traffic signal light at the intersection in question was red for North and South traffic; that Press-wood failed to stop for the red light and that such failure was a proximate cause of the collision. Appellant’s first six points urge that there was no evidence to support such findings, and that such findings were against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence. These points are overruled. Ap-pellee Mrs. Jones testified that as she approached the intersection going West on 'North 6th Street and as she entered the intersection the traffic signal light was green; that both she and the car in front of her entered the intersection and neither of them stopped because the light was green; that the light had not turned to yellow prior to the time of the collision ; that after the collision appellant got out of his car, came to her car, inquired about her condition and the condition of her baby, and then told her that he was sorry "that he had “run the red light”. She also testified that two other cars headed North on Pine Street were stopped at the intersection waiting for the light to change before crossing 6th Street. This constituted some evidence that the traffic light at the intersection at the time in question was red for North and South traffic on Pine. There was still other evidence tending to support such findings.

Contrary to appellant’s contention the record as a whole does not show that the findings in question were against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence. An illustration of the evidence which appellant urges in support of his contention in this respect is his own testimony that the light was green when he entered the intersection. There was, however, the testimony of the officer who investigated the accident and stated that when he asked appellant about the matter shortly after the time of and at the site of the accident, appellant stated that he did not know “whether the light was green or-red”. In support of his contention appellant also urges the testimony of a witness who saw the cars collide and testified that he was watching when the collision occurred, and he then looked at the light to “see which way it was” and at that time the light was in the process of changing but that he did not remember whether it was changing from red to green or from green- to red. Appellant also particularly urges that there was no evidence as to whether "the traffic light was operating properly at thé timé of the collision, and that in view of tli’é absence of such testimony it can not be concluded that appellant entered the intersection against a red light based solely upon evidence to the effect that appellee was at the time "entering the intersection from the East on a green light. Actually the only evidence contrary to the findings complained of was that of appellant to the effect that the light was green at the time he entered the intersection, and this was weakened by his statements to Mrs. Jones and the officer just after the accident. In’our opini ion there is not only ample evidence to support the findings complained of, but also a consideration of the record as a whole doeá not show that such findings are against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence.

In answer to special issue number 4, the jury found that appellanf Presswood failed to keep a proper lookout immediately prior to the collision and in answer to special issue number 5, that such failure by appellant was a proximate cause of the collision. Appellant presents a point urging that the court erred in failing to grant a new trial on the ground that the finding that appellant failed to keep a proper lookout was against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence. We have considered the evidence as a whole and find that the point is not well taken.

Appellant urges in other points that there was no evidence to support the finding that his failure to keep a proper look[488]*488out was a proximate cause of the collision and that such finding was against the great .weight and preponderance of the. evidence. .We also overrule these points. Appellant, ■who was called as an adverse witness, .testified that- he had just reached the intersection in question when he first saw ap-pellee’s car which was then in the intersection. The evidence shows that other cars were also in . the intersection going the .same way as appellant, and that two other .cars headed North on Pine Street were Stopped on the South side of 6th Street waiting for the light to change. Appellant .testified that he did not see any traffic meeting him and that the only car he saw in the intersection was appellee’s car, and that when he saw her the first time she was in front of him in the intersection. Appellant also testified that when the officer who investigated the accident asked him what had happened he replied, “Well, I don’t know.” The evidence in our opinion supports the finding that appellant’s failure to keep a proper lookout was a proximate cause of the collision and the record as a whole does not show that such finding was against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence.

• The jury found in answer to special issues 6, 7, and 8 that appellant failed to apply his brakes in time to avoid the collision; that such action was negligence and a proximate cause of the collision. We overrule appellant’s points contending that there was no evidence to support the findings that his failure to apply his brakes was negligence and that such negligence was a proximate cause of the collision. We also overrule appellant’s contention that such findings are against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence. Appellant testified that he had just reached the intersection when he first saw Mrs. Jones’ car; that when he saw her car he applied his brakes, but when again asked whether he had reached the intersection at the time, appellant replied: “Well when you have a wreck like that you just don’t know whether you — where you are at, right just at the ■moment.” The officer who investigated the accident at the time testified that the only skid mark found by him was a slight one at about the point of the collision.

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Bluebook (online)
381 S.W.2d 485, 1964 Tex. App. LEXIS 2744, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/presswood-v-jones-texapp-1964.