Purser v. Hyams Coal Co.

6 La. App. 687
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 25, 1927
DocketNo. 10,222
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 6 La. App. 687 (Purser v. Hyams Coal Co.) 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
Purser v. Hyams Coal Co., 6 La. App. 687 (La. Ct. App. 1927).

Opinion

JONES, J.

Plaintiff sues individually for one hundred twenty ($120.00) dollars and as tutor of his minor daughter, Mary Purser, for two thousand ($2,000.00) dollars, for personal injuries to her on February 16, 1925, on Rampart Street in front of Union Station in this city, by a truck of defendant company.

Defendant is charged with negligence on two grpunds, viz:

I. That truck was being driven at an excessive speed.

2. That when the ' truck was opposite Miss Purser, the driver turned the front wheels and caused the rear end to skid into Miss Purs.er, and throw her back against the street car and then on the pavement, thereby inflicting many bruises, a dislocation of the hip, etc.

Defendant first filed exceptions of vagueness on ground that petition did not show the following essentials:

1. Exact place on Rampart Street where the accident happened.

2. The speed at which truck was going.

3. How the skidding of the truck was due to negligence of chauffeur.

[688]*688Plaintiff then filed an amended petition stating that the accident happened on South Rampart between Howard Avenue and Calliope on the river side on downtown street- car track betwen twenty-five and thirty-five feet from Howard Avenue.

Defendant then filed an answer admitting the accident, but denying the negligence, specially averring as follows:

1. That an automobile had suddenly come out of Union Station from behind a street car going uptown, immediately in front of this truck, which was going downtown on the right hand side of Rampart Street at a reasonable, legal rate of speed.

2. That the driver immediately put on his brakes and as his truck was going very slowly, stopped in time to prevent striking the automobile.

3. That when the brakes were applied the rear end of the truck skidded slightly to the left and struck Miss Purser, who was standing in the middle of the street, between the car tracks.

4. That Miss Purser at the time was crossing South Rampart Street in violation of the traffic ordinance. No. 7490 C. C. S. and the accident was caused by the carelessness of the young lady and particularly because of the violation of the traffic ordinance, as defendant’s driver was without fault.

It is thus seen that the answer, which was sworn to by the attorney on information and belief, admitted the skidding of the truck, but on the trial of the case the driver testified, without objection, that the truck did not skid, but was struck by the tail of his truck. His testimony on direct examination is as follows:

“Q. You are the driver of a truck for the R. P. Hyams Coal Company, Limited?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. You were the driver of that truck on February 16, 1925, when it struck and hurt Miss Mary Purser?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. Please tell the court exactly how the accident happened?
“A. Miss Mary and another lady came out of the depot about the middle of the block. I was headed downtown and both of them stopped and the other lady went across and Miss Mary stood still and at that time the car behind, her was ringing its bell and as the car go in front of my truck she started to cross and ran into the tail part of my truck and I stopped and by the time I got down Miss Mary had got up and picked up her ipocketbook and a policeman came up and took my license number and my name.
“Q. How fast were you going?
“A. Very slow, about five miles an hour, because during train hours there are lots of people around there.
“Q. There is no doubt about it that you were not going faster than five miles an hour ?
“A. No, sir; no faster than that,
“Q. How far did you go after this accident happened?
“A. I stopped in less than five feet, because when she got in between the car and the truck I would have stopped then, but I knew if I stopped, the truck would slide and knock her against the street car and when the back part of the truck hit the lady I stopped right away. The truck never did slide before she was down or got up.
“Q. Is the back part of your truck wider than the front of it?
“A. Yes, sir, the back part has a wide wing on it.
“Q. Were you driving in the car tracks?
“A. Yes, sir, but the inside wheels on that side was not in the track next to the car track as it did not fit into the track account of being wider and the wheels that were not in the track were those next to the car track that the car was on.
“Q. Then your left wheels were not in the track?
“A. No, it was outside the track and the right wheel was inside the track.
[689]*689“Q. In other words, your truck is wider than the street car track?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. How far was this from the intersection. of Howard 'Avenue and Rampart Street?
“Á. Twenty-five or thirty feet after I stopped. I had stopped before I got to the intersection. She came out the depot right where the stone platform is and crossed over.
”Q. She crossed over the street right opposite that same platform?
“A. Yes, sir.”

On cross examination as to variance between his testimony and the answer of the company, he stated that he made a written report of the accident to defendant and some time later had made a statement to the attorney, but that he had never stated to anyone that the truck had skidded or that any automobile, had passed behind the car. Counsel for defendant then stated that the answer had been prepared from statement furnished by employees of the company, who were said to have gotten them from the driver.

The Judge of the lower court gave judgment for defendant and plaintiff has appealed.

His reasons, for judgment are as follows:

The evidence shows that Miss Purser, a young lady, I understand nineteen years old, arrived in New Orleans on an Illinois Central train at nine o'clock in the morning on February 16, 1925.

She was met at the depot by a cousin, a lady apparently between forty and forty-five years of age. The two came through the Union Station and came out on the South Rampart Street side, about forty feet from the corner. The elder cousin walked ahead and the young lady, whose name is Miss Mary Purser, evidently got slightly behind her by stopping to give her bag to the negro • red cap.

The cousin stated that she saw a street car approaching going uptown and she saw a large truck of the defendant coming downtown. She said she did not gauge the distance of the two vehicles, but stated that she thought she had time to cross the street in safety and proceeded to do so.

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Bluebook (online)
6 La. App. 687, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/purser-v-hyams-coal-co-lactapp-1927.