Shaver v. Davis

368 A.2d 1057, 34 Md. App. 672, 1977 Md. App. LEXIS 552
CourtCourt of Special Appeals of Maryland
DecidedFebruary 7, 1977
DocketNo. 516
StatusPublished

This text of 368 A.2d 1057 (Shaver v. Davis) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Special Appeals of Maryland primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Shaver v. Davis, 368 A.2d 1057, 34 Md. App. 672, 1977 Md. App. LEXIS 552 (Md. Ct. App. 1977).

Opinion

Powers, J.,

delivered the opinion of the Court.

Trial of this suit of Joseph T. Shaver against Lynn Raymond Davis having resulted in a jury verdict in favor of the defendant, Shaver and his wife, who joined him in a loss of consortium claim, have appealed from the judgment entered on that verdict. Trial was held in the Circuit Court for Howard County in January, 1976, Judge George B. Rasin presiding.

We need to consider only the assertion by the appellants that the trial judge erred in his instruction to the jury on the law relating to automatic traffic signals. The factual basis for the instruction is virtually undisputed. At about 10:00 A.M. on 18 December 1973, Mr. Shaver was driving north on U. S. Route 1, a north-south dual highway in Howard County, approaching its intersection with Waterloo Road, also a dual highway, which runs generally east and west. The intersection is controlled by a traffic light. There was a stipulation describing the times and sequences of the various colors, but the details are not significant to the question in this case.

As Mr. Shaver approached the intersection the light was red. He stopped. When the light turned green he proceeded north into the intersection. Mr. Davis was driving east on Waterloo Road. Davis testified that as he approached the intersection the light was green, but turned to amber when he was 30 feet from the intersection. He said that the light was still amber when he entered the intersection, and he proceeded across. The two vehicles collided. A police officer testified that the Impact occurred at the intersection of the left eastbound lane of Waterloo Road and the right northbound lane of Route 1.

In his instructions on the law governing traffic controlled by lights, the judge read to the jury the applicable subsections of Code, Art. 66'A, § 11-202, relating to a green signal, a yellow signal, and a red signal. He explained the [674]*674meaning of the statute relating to the yellow signal by saying:

“A motorist facing the yellow light is entitled to enter the intersection and having thus entered the intersection legally is entitled to proceed through regardless of a change in the traffic signals from yellow to red during the course of his passage through the intersection. He does not have to attempt to stop since he has the same rights as those of the motorist facing a green light and may continue to proceed through the intersection regardless of the change in the traffic signal from yellow to red during the course of his passage.”

The court went on to say:

“Therefore, if you find that the defendant Davis entered the intersection while faced with a yellow light he had the right-of-way and, therefore, your verdict should be for the defendant, if you find that the plaintiff proceeded into the intersection while faced, even though while faced with a green light, but further finding that the defendant entered the intersection while faced with a yellow light. This is a change in the law of this state as understood by motorists, lawyers, judges and others, going back for some years, because the previous law was that yellow meant caution, to proceed with caution, there’s been a change in the statute which permits now, one who enters an intersection on a yellow light to proceed through as if he had the green light. In other words, you are lawfully within an intersection if you enter on a yellow light. However, if that yellow light changes to red before you enter the intersection even though you saw it yellow before you entered the intersection then you do not have the right-of-way and you are not lawfully within the intersection. So the issue in this case with respect to liability is to determine the color of [675]*675the light as it faced the defendant Davis as he entered the intersection. And, of course, the intersection in this case, his entering the intersection would be controlled by his passing the curbline of the western edge of Route 1. As he crossed the western boundary of Route 1 he would be entering that intersection.”

Further in the instructions, and with respect to Mr. Shaver, the court told the jury:

“In determining whether or not the plaintiff, Mr. Shaver, exercised reasonable care and caution before entering the intersection you are to consider whether or not he looked out for traffic lawfully proceeding within the intersection. If you find that the plaintiff did not see what he must have seen had he looked, you should assume that the plaintiff either imprudently did not look when it was his duty to look or that looking he saw and then adventured to make the crossing in the face of its obvious peril. Consequently, if you find that he did not look for the traffic proceeding within the intersection in a lawful manner, that is, the other traffic proceeding lawfully within the intersection, or looked but did not sec which would have been obvious to him, or looked and attempted to make the passage in the face of the obvious peril, and that such action caused or contributed to the happening of this occurrence then your verdict should be for the defendant Mr. Davis. But, obviously, if you find that the defendant was not lawfully within the intersection, that is, that he entered the intersection on a red light, then the defendant is guilty of negligence and there is no responsibility on the plaintiff at all to look or to see him if the defendant was not lawfully within the intersection. Of course, I should modify that by saying that if he did observe that Mr. Davis was unlawfully within the intersection and he could avoid the accident then, obviously, he must do that.
[676]*676“But because one has the green light that does not mean that one can just barge through without observing the intersection at all, he has to act as a reasonably prudent, as a reasonable prudent person would act faced with a green light under the circumstances which you heard described in this case.”

Objections made by appellants’ counsel at the conclusion of the instructions were, we are satisfied, sufficient to preserve for appeal the issue of whether there was error in the instructions which explained to the jury the rights of a motorist who enters an intersection on a yellow light. The court made no changes in its instructions following the statements by counsel of their objections.

It is quite obvious that in giving his instructions Judge Rasin was guided by the opinion of this Court in Klarman v. Haraszti, 24 Md. App. 483, 332 A. 2d 291 (1975). In our opinion in that case, we said, at 484:

“We hold that a motorist facing the yellow light is entitled to enter the intersection and having thus entered the intersection legally is entitled to proceed through regardless of a change in the traffic signal from yellow to red during the course of his passage.”

With respect to the specific facts and record in the trial of that case, we said, at 490, that the trial court should have granted a requested instruction which said:

“If you find the plaintiff entered the intersection while the traffic light for him was yellow, then your verdict must be for the plaintiff as a matter of law for the proximate cause of the collision, then, would be the action of the defendant, making a left turn.”

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

Related

Klarman v. Haraszti
332 A.2d 291 (Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, 1975)
Baltimore Transit Co. v. Putnam
241 A.2d 586 (Court of Appeals of Maryland, 1968)
Haraszti v. Klarman
352 A.2d 833 (Court of Appeals of Maryland, 1976)
Schwiegerath v. Berger
205 A.2d 290 (Court of Appeals of Maryland, 1964)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
368 A.2d 1057, 34 Md. App. 672, 1977 Md. App. LEXIS 552, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/shaver-v-davis-mdctspecapp-1977.