Talley v. Morphis

334 S.W.2d 652, 232 Ark. 91, 1960 Ark. LEXIS 362
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedApril 25, 1960
Docket5-2040
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 334 S.W.2d 652 (Talley v. Morphis) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Talley v. Morphis, 334 S.W.2d 652, 232 Ark. 91, 1960 Ark. LEXIS 362 (Ark. 1960).

Opinion

Carleton Harris, Chief Justice.

On March 17, 1959, appellant, E. E. Talley, a resident of Jackson County, Arkansas, instituted suit against J. H. Morphis and Frank Anderson, in the Circuit Court of that county, for alleged injuries suffered, and damages sustained in Jackson County when Talley’s automobile was struck by a freight truck owned by Morphis, and driven by Anderson, both residents of Pope County. Morphis and Anderson filed an answer denying any negligence, and further stated that “the damages, if any, sustained by the plaintiff, were caused by the unlawful and negligent acts of the plaintiff, E. E. Talley, and George Davis.” Davis, a neighbor of Talley, had used his truck to push Talley’s car, which would not start, from the latter’s yard out onto the pavement of the highway, and for a short distance thereafter. A counterclaim was filed wherein Morphis sought recovery for damages to his tractor, trailer, and cargo of potatoes, and Anderson sought judgment for personal injuries.1 Thereafter, on April 22nd, Morphis and Anderson instituted suit in the Circuit Court of Pope County against Davis, and obtained service on Davis the following day; on May 22nd, appellant filed a motion to make Davis a third party defendant in the Jackson County suit. Appellees, Morphis and Anderson, replied to the motion, asserting that because of the action instituted against Davis in Pope County, the Circuit Court of Jackson County was without jurisdiction to make Davis a third party defendant. The court granted the motion, and Talley filed his third party complaint against Davis, setting out the allegations of negligence, contended by Morphis and Anderson in their suit against Davis in the Pope Circuit Court. The prayer was “that plaintiff have judgment against the defendants, J. H. Morphis and Frank Anderson, as prayed in his original complaint. In the alternative, plaintiff prays that he have judgment against the defendants, J. H. Morphis and Frank Anderson, and against the third party defendant, George L. Davis, in the sum of $25,000 damages, if it should he found that the third party defendant, George L. Davis, so negligently operated his truck as to prevent the defendant, Frank Anderson, the driver of the tractor trailer of the defendant, J. H. Morphis, from avoiding collision with plaintiff’s automobile by steering said tractor trailer to the right and the rear of plaintiff’s automobile. As a second alternative, plaintiff prays that the proportion and extent of contribution as between the plaintiff and the third party defendant, George L. Davis, be determined by the court, if it should be found that the collision here in controversy, was the result of the concurrent negligence of the plaintiff and of the third party defendant, George L. Davis, and not the result of the negligence of Frank Anderson, the driver of the tractor trailer, belonging to defendant, J. H. Morphis.” After the court had refused a motion by Morphis and Anderson to vacate its order of May 22nd, they, reserving their rights relative to the jurisdiction of the court to make Davis a third party defendant, filed their third party complaint against Davis, alleging the same concurrent negligence on the party of Talley and Davis, as previously alleged in their counterclaim against Talley. Davis denied any negligence, and on June 9th, the cause went to trial. The court directed a verdict in favor of the third party defendant, Davis, and the jury returned a verdict finding that Talley should be charged with 66 2/3% of the total negligence resulting in the collision, and appellees, Morphis and Anderson, should be charged with 33 1/3%. The jury found no damages were sustained by Talley or Anderson, but found that Morphis was damaged in the amount of $8,666. On June 19th, judgment was entered in favor of appellee Morphis, against appellant Talley, in the sum of $5,777.32. From such judgment, Talley brings this appeal, and Morphis and Anderson have cross-appealed.

In contending for reversal, appellant lists several points, but all relate to, and are included in, the contention that there was insufficient evidence to support the jury verdict.

Talley’s version of the collision was as follows: On the morning of December 12, 1958, he started to town. His car would not start, and he asked his neighbor, G-eorge Davis, to give him a push, the latter complying with the request. Talley stated that he drove up the highway about three hundred yards, looked in his rear-view mirror, and saw a truck coming, but it was some distance back. He testified that he put out his hand and signaled a left turn, holding the hand out for a hundred feet or better before proceeding to start the turn; he heard no horn from any approaching vehicle. “Just as my wheels got off the slab, something hit me, and I went out, and I never knowed no more. ’ ’ Talley then detailed his injuries.

Davis testified that he pushed Talley for seventy or seventy-five feet on the highway before the latter’s car started. According to the witness, Talley traveled about two-tenths of a mile before making a signal for a left turn. Davis, about fifty yards behind Talley, stated that he put on his brakes, slowing his car to permit Talley to get out of the way. “About that time, the truck pulled beside me and blew his horn. Well, when he blew his horn, Mr. Talley, I seen Mr. Talley was already in the turn. I seen there was going to be an accident.” He first testified that Talley gave a turning signal about one hundred sixty feet before reaching the point of the collision, although on cross-examination he stated, “Well, he could have held it out 100 feet or he could have held it out five feet, but he held it out long enough that I could see he was going to make a left hand turn. ’ ’

Anderson testified that he saw Talley and Davis enter the highway, being from three-tenths to four-tenths of a mile from them at the time . . . that he (Anderson) was driving at approximately fifty miles per hour . . . that he sounded his horn as he came up to Davis, who was about fifteen feet back of Talley . . . that he did not see Talley give any signal for a turn . . . that after the collision he asked Davis if he saw Talley give any signal, and Davis replied, “I don’t know, I knew he was going to turn.”

Appellees contended at the trial that Talley was hard of hearing, and appellant admitted this to be true; they also contended that his eye-sight was not good. Talley, who was not wearing glasses at the time of the collision, stated that ten or fifteen years back he wore glasses, but was not presently using them. “Do you still have some glasses ? A. No, sir, I have not, I broke my glasses. Q. But you used to wear them before you broke them? A. Oh, several years ago, but I lost them and never did get no more so I just went right on. Q. You do not have any glasses with you now in your back pocket? A. They are no good. They are broke. Q. But you do have some in your back pocket? A. Yes, sir, but they’re no good. Q. But you didn’t have those on, or any other glasses on, at the time of the accident? A. No, sir.” Appellant testified that after first observing the truck through the mirror, he ‘ ‘ didn’t look back anymore.” On cross-examination, he was less positive about giving the signal for the turn a hundred feet back, and admitted that he could have been closer to the point of the collision.

As was stated in Hot Springs Street Railway Company v. Hill, 198 Ark. 319, 128 S. W. 2d 369:

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Bluebook (online)
334 S.W.2d 652, 232 Ark. 91, 1960 Ark. LEXIS 362, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/talley-v-morphis-ark-1960.