St. Louis-S. F. Ry. Co. v. Eakins

1929 OK 563, 284 P. 868, 141 Okla. 256, 1929 Okla. LEXIS 25
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedDecember 17, 1929
Docket18394
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 1929 OK 563 (St. Louis-S. F. Ry. Co. v. Eakins) 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
St. Louis-S. F. Ry. Co. v. Eakins, 1929 OK 563, 284 P. 868, 141 Okla. 256, 1929 Okla. LEXIS 25 (Okla. 1929).

Opinion

LEACH, C.

This action was commenced by the defendant in error, Mary A. Eakins, hereinafter referred to as plaintiff, against the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company and its employee, Peter B. Cross, a railway locomotive engineer, to recover damages for and on behalf of herself and children, for the alleged wrongful death of the husband of plaintiff, resulting from a collision between a truck driven by tbe deceased and a passenger train operated by the defendant at a highway grade crossing on defendant’s railway track. A veriict and judgment were entered in the cause for plaintiff for the sum of $7,500 against the railway company alone, from which it prosecutes this appeal and assigns numerous errors as grounds for reversal. The railway company will be hereinafter referred to as defendant.

The first proposition presented and argued by the defendant railway company is that no question of liability was presented to the jury except that based upon the doctrine of respondeat superior, and since me jury exonerated the engineer, then the verdict against the company cannot be sustained, and the court erred in denying its motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict.

In support of the contention, it cites Parker v. Luse, 97 Okla. 101, 223 Pac. 122; Chicago, R. I. & P. Ry. Co. v. Austin, 43 Okla. 698, 144 Pac. 1069, and other cases from this and foreign courts holding in accord with the cases mentioned.

Under the record in the instant case, we do not find the eases cited to be controlling or sustaining the contention that there was error in tbe action of tbe court in denying the motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. It does not necessarily follow that, because a verdict is rendered in favor of an employee and against the principal or the losing party be entitled to a new trial, that such party is likewise entitled to judgment notwithstanding the verdict. It is only In cases where the special findings of fact or the pleadings warrant that a party is entitled to judgment notwithstanding the verdict. There were no special findings of fact in the instant case. It is alleged in the concluding paragraph of plaintiff’s petition, “that the deceased’s injuries and death, aforesaid, were directly caused by the negligence of the defendant and each of them, acting jointly and concurrently in tbe following particulars, to wit:

“(a) In negligently and carelessly operating and running said locomotive and train of cars at a high, reckless, unsafe and unreasonable rate of speed, to wit, in excess of 45 miles per hour, contrary to law, the provisions of the statutes of the state of Oklahoma, and in total disregard for the safety of the public using said highway.

“(b) In negligently and carelessly fixing, establishing and maintaining a schedule for the speed of trains at said dangerous and much traveled crossing aforesaid at approximately 40 miles per hour”

—and thereafter follows several other enumerated acts of alleged negligence^ such as failing to ring the bell and give proper signals in approaching the crossing, and in failing to observe certain rules prescribed by the railway company, which latter appear to be primarily acts of negligence on the part of tbe engineer alone.

AVe consider the rule, reasoning, and authorities set out in the case of St. Louis-S. F. Ry. Co. v. Bell, 134 Okla. 251, 273 Pac. 243, applicable and controlling in the instant ease on the first proposition advanced. It is said in the syllabus of that case:

“(1) In the absence of special findings, the court is without jurisdiction to enter judgment notwithstanding the verdict, unless same is warranted by the pleadings. The court is not authorized to render such judgment because there is an entire failure of evidence to justify the verdict in favor of the prevailing party, or because the evi *258 deuce shows that, as a matter of law, the court should have directed a verdict in favor of the losing party.

“(2) Herein the averments of the petition were sufficient to admit of proof that the appellant railway company, by and through some of its agents other than the conductor, was guilty of negligence proximately contributing to appellee’s injury, and we assume, in favor of the general verdict, that such proof was made; therefore, we hold the motion noil obstante veredicto; was properly overruled.”

Since plaintiff’s petition specifically charges the railway company with “negligently and carelessly fixing, establishing, and maintaining a schedule for the speed of trains at said dangerous and much traveled crossing aforesaid at approximately 40 miles per hour,” an alleged primary act of negligence on the part of the railway company when considered alone or in connection with the other alleged acts of negligence, we consider it sufficient to withstand defendant’s motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, and no error is shown in the action of the trial court in denying the motion under the record in the case and the rule advanced in the above quoted ease.

It is next contended; “The verdict of the jury against the defendant is not supported by sufficient evidence.” Under which it is argued that, since the only allegation of primary negligence against the railway company was that wherein the railway company was charged with being negligent and careless in fixing, establishing, and maintaining a schedule for the speed of its train, as hereinbefore set out, the jury must, in view of their verdict exonerating the engineer, have based its verdict against the railway company upon such alleged negligence alone, and it is stated' and contended by defendant that such alleged primáry and specific negligence and issue arising thereon was; by the trial court, in its instruction 10a, partially copied in the brief, specifically find expressly withdrawn from the consideration of the jury. The entire instruction 10a, under which it is contended by the defendant that the trial court withdrew the question from the jury, is as follows:

“You are instructed in this case that the evidence shows the deceased was struck by train No. 10, a fast train from Oklahoma City to St. Louis, Mo. Therefore, the mere fact that the defendant railway company operated a fast train over its track is no negligence on its part, when taken alone, and will not justify a verdict against said railway company at your hands. But. in determining this question, you may take into consideration the speed at which the train was being operated at the time of the accident, the conditions prevailing at the crossing and west on said highway, and all the facts and circumstances surrounding the case.”

When the instruction is considered as a whole, as we must so consider it, we are unable to agree with the contention that such instruction withdrew from the jury the consideration of such alleged negll gence on the part of the railway company.

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Bluebook (online)
1929 OK 563, 284 P. 868, 141 Okla. 256, 1929 Okla. LEXIS 25, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/st-louis-s-f-ry-co-v-eakins-okla-1929.