Rafferty v. Collins

1932 OK 630, 15 P.2d 600, 160 Okla. 63, 1932 Okla. LEXIS 674
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedSeptember 20, 1932
Docket21207
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 1932 OK 630 (Rafferty v. Collins) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rafferty v. Collins, 1932 OK 630, 15 P.2d 600, 160 Okla. 63, 1932 Okla. LEXIS 674 (Okla. 1932).

Opinion

RIDEY, J.

Defendants in error, herein referred to as plaintiffs, are the owners of 100 acres of land in Payne county, lying north in the bottom land along the north side of Cimarron river. The land is one-fourth mile wide and five-eighths of a mile long running north and south. Plaintiffs in error, herein referred to as defendants, own the land adjoining plaintiffs’ on the north and west. Defendant Dyle owns the land adjoining that of plaintiffs on the west and defendant Latterly owns the land adjoining plaintiffs’ on the north, and also owns land adjoining defendant Lyle on the south.

Plaintiffs commenced this action to recover damages -alleged to have been caused by defendants in constructing a drainage ditch across plaintiffs’ land and diverting the water which would not naturally flow across their land into said drainage ditch, *64 and that in so doing the defendants constructed ditches and dykes over their own land so as to divert the water from their land into that of plaintiffs, and that by the construction of the drainage ditch across plaintiffs’ land ¡the greater portion thereof had 'been cut off from the house and bam on their land.

Defendants answered by general denial, and further specifically denied that they, at the time alleged in the petition, or any other time, without the knowledge or consent of the plaintiffs', comlmitted a trespass upon their land by ditching the same. They further denied that plaintiffs had been damaged by the construction of the ditch and asserted the value lof plaintiffs’ land had been enhanced thereby. They further pleaded the statute of limitation.

The reply was a general and specific denial.

The cause was tried to a jury, resulting-in a verdict and judgment for plaintiffs, and defendants appeal. They have set up fourteen assignments of error. Only three are presented. All others will be treated as abandoned. The assignments presented are the 5th, 13th, and 14th.

The fifth assignment is that the court erred in giving instructions numbered 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, and 13. In their brief they complain only of instructions Nos. 12 and 13. They first complain of instruction No. 13, which is:

“You are further instructed, that the defendants have no right to enter plaintiffs’ land to open a ditch, and in doing so they are trespassers and as such trespassers the law entitles plaintiffs to nominal damages for any acts done while trespassing, even if you should find no substantial damages done; and in this connection, you are instructed any arrangements that might have been made with the administrator of the father of these plaintiffs or with a tenant on the land, would give no1 right to an easement to enter plaintiffs’ land and construct any open ditches thereon.”

It is contended that this instruction is erroneous in that it assumes that defendants did enter upon the land of plaintiffs and constructed the ditch complained of, although this was specifically denied in the pleadings and evidence of defendants. This instruction, standing alone, might be objectionable, but when taken in connection with other instructions given by the court, it is not error.

The jury was told in other instructions that the burden was upon plaintiffs to prove the allegations with reference to the damages complained of by a preponderance of the evidence; that the jury should find by a preponderance of the evidence that the water was forced on plaintiffs’ land to their damage by the defendants; that an extra amount of water was caused to flow upon plaintiffs’ land by the digging of said ditch by defendants, and that samei had been opened within two years prior to the commencement of the suit, before they could find for plaintiffs.

In other instructions the jury was plainly told that they must find from the evidence that the acts complained of were performed by defendants before a verdict could be returned for plaintiffs. The jury could not have been misled in the manner suggested by the first instruction quoted.

The other instruction complained of in the brief is No. 12, as follows:

“You are instructed that before a drainage ditch can be established that there must be filed an application setting forth the necessity, with a description of the proposed ditch, and the property affected thereby, in the office of the county clerk praying for the county commissioners to authorize the establishment of such ditch in the manner required by law and a hearing had thereon and viewers appointed before the commissioners can authorize the establishment of a ditch, and in this connection, you are instructed that any act of Union township in diverting the water 'by construction of culverts and dykes would be no defense for these defendants in this case if they in anywise participated in diverting water, together with a diversion caused by Union township, in increased quantities across plaintiffs’ land.”

Defendants contend that this instruction is reversible error upon the ground that it also assumes that defendants opened the ditch, and further -because it instructs the jury upon a material issue not raised by the pleadings.

Neither contention is tenable. The jury was plainly told that any act of Union township in diverting the water would be no defense for these defendants in case they in anywise participated in diverting the water.

It is contended that there was no issue raised by the pleadings with reference to the establishment of a drainage ditch by the county commissioners, and that there were no grounds whatever for giving the first part of the instruction. It is true that there was no allegation in the pleadings with reference to the establishment of a drainage ditch by the county commissioners, but defendants did contend at the trial that whatever they *65 did in connection with the opening of the drainage ditch was under the direction of Union township, or the road supervisor of that township. In fact they contended that the township opened the ditch across plaintiffs’ land and they had nothing whatever to do with it. On this point the evidence was in conflict. That part of the instruction complained of merely told the jury that the township had no power to create a drainage district and invade the property of plaintiffs in order to carry out ¡their plan of drainage thereon. And incidentally told the jury that the only way a drainage district could be lawfully created was through and by the board of county commissioners and in the manner provided by law. In view of the whole record, the instruction was not reversible error.

Assignment No. 14 is that the court erred in limiting the number of witnesses offered by defendants on a material issue, viz., whether there was a natural water course across plaintiffs’ land substantially where the ditch was alleged to have been constructed.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Stanolind Oil & Gas Co. v. Cartwright
1948 OK 207 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1948)
Walton v. Bryan
1941 OK 24 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1941)
Pure Oil Co. v. Quarles
1938 OK 422 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1938)
Oklahoma City v. Jones
60 P.2d 617 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1936)
Cowen v. T. J. Stewart Lbr. Co.
1936 OK 398 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1936)
Chicago, R.I. P. R. Co. v. Odom
1936 OK 266 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1936)
Bunch v. Humphreys
1935 OK 971 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1935)
Norton-Johnson Buick Co. v. Lindley
1935 OK 468 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1935)
Chicago, R. I. & P. Ry. Co. v. Kahl
1934 OK 374 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1934)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1932 OK 630, 15 P.2d 600, 160 Okla. 63, 1932 Okla. LEXIS 674, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rafferty-v-collins-okla-1932.