Texas Electric Ry. Co. v. Texas Employers' Ins.

9 S.W.2d 185, 1928 Tex. App. LEXIS 777
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 21, 1928
DocketNo. 652.
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 9 S.W.2d 185 (Texas Electric Ry. Co. v. Texas Employers' Ins.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Texas Electric Ry. Co. v. Texas Employers' Ins., 9 S.W.2d 185, 1928 Tex. App. LEXIS 777 (Tex. Ct. App. 1928).

Opinion

STANFORD, J.

Suit by appellees, Texas Employers’ Insurance Association and Mrs. Georgia C. James, to recover damages for the death of George W. James, whose death it was alleged was the result of a collision between an automobile being driven by the said George W. James and an interurban car operated by appellant. It was alleged that the Texas Employers’ Insurance Association, by reason of being obligated to pay compensation to Birs. Georgia C. James, wife of the said George W. James, under the Workmen’s Compensation Law (Rev. St. 1925, art. 8306 et seq.) wa.s entitled to subrogation to the extent of its liability to her. Appellees alleged that the said George W. James was traveling in an easterly direction along Ren-ick street in an automobile, and, while attempting to cross the track of appellant in the corporate limits of the city of Waco, one of appellant’s electric cars struck said automobile while on the crossing of its track with said Renick street, and killed the said George W. James. Appellees alleged several specific acts of negligence on the part of the employees of appellant operating said interurban car which proximately caused the collision and death of the said James. Appellant, in addition to a general demurrer, special exceptions and a general denial, pleaded several special defenses. As there is no contention but that the pleadings were sufficient to raise all issues made by the evidence, it is not necessary to more fully set out the pleadings of either party.

The case was submitted to a jury on many special issues, all of which were found favorable to appellees, basing liability on the part of appellant on the grounds:

(1) That the motorman in charge of said interurban car, in approaching said Renick *187 street crossing, failed to give any warning of its approach.

(2) That the motorman in charge of said interurban car was negligent in operating said car, as it approached said crossing, at the rate of speed it was operated.

(3) That the deceased was in peril on said ■crossing, and the motorman discovered his peril in time to have avoided the injury, etc.

In response to a number of special issues, the jury exonerated the deceased from every conceivable phase of contributory negligence, and assessed the damages at $18,150. After a remittitur of $3,150, the court entered judgment against appellant for $15,000. Appellant has duly appealed, and presents the record here for review.

Under several propositions, appellant contends, in effect, that the court should have instructed a verdict in its favor, or have set aside the findings of the jury exonerating deceased from contributory negligence and finding the negligence of appellant the cause of the collision. The record discloses the collision occurred in East Waco on the crossing of Renick street with the, interurban tracks. Reniek street extends east from the Waco-Dallas road. The interurban, in approaching Waco from the north, crosses Renick street, making an angle of about 60 degrees between the north line of Renick street and the west rail of the track of the interurban. Deceased, traveling north along the Dallas road, turned into Renick street, and, while proceeding east along Renick street and while oh the crossing of said street over the interurban track, was struck by a south-bound interurban .car, and almost instantly killed. The distance from the Dallas road along Renick street to the interurban tracks is 250 feet. Almost along this entire distance the view to the north is completely obscured by buildings, high plank fences, signboards, etc., so that it is difficult for one approaching said crossing on Renick street going east to see an interurban approaching said crossing from, the north, until he gets near the interurban tracks. Just as the driver of an automobile emerges from the obstructions on the north side of Renick street, the front of the automobile is visible from the north for a distance of 215 feet along the track. The deceased, early on a cold morning, approached said crossing going east. His engine was not working well from the time he turned into Renick street until he reached said crossing. The evidence is sufficient to show that the interurban approached said public street crossing at a rate of speed ranging from 30 to 40 • miles per hour, without giving any warning of its approach by gong, whistle, or otherwise, prior to the collision. We think the findings of the jury that the appellant; under all the circumstances, was guilty of negligence in its failure to give any warning and in the rate of speed at which its interurban approached said crossing, and that such negligence was the proximate cause of the collision and death of the deceased, are sustained by the evidence.

But appellant contends the deceased was guilty of contributory negligence. As above set out, there were obstructions along the north side of Renick street from where said street leaves the Dallas road to a point close to appellant’s right of way, which obstructed the view of a south-bound interurban approaching said crossing, by one approaching said crossing going east along Renick street, by reason of which, doubtless, the deceased did not see said approaching interurban until he was very close to said crossing. He probably listened for an approaching car but heard none, for, as found by the jury, no warning of the approach of said ear was given. It is also probable that the attention of the deceased was momentarily distracted by an unexpected trouble with the carbureter of his engine. The evidence indicates that he approached said crossing slowly and cautiously, but that he did not see or know of the approach of said interurban until he was on or so near the track that he could not stop before going upon it. By reason of obstructions on each side of Renick street at said point, he could not turn either to the right or left and thereby avoid going upon the track. At least, said obstructions justified him, in the exercise of ordinary care, in believing that he could not do so. Believing he could not turn to either side off of Renick street to a place of safety, and not being able to stop before getting on the track, doubtless he thought the safest course was to try to get across, but in so doing he did not realize or anticipate the excessive rate of speed at which the interurban was running. In passing upon the sufficiency of the evidence to raise an issue of fact for the jury as to the contributory negligence of one injured or killed on a railway crossing, it is the duty of the appellate court to consider the evidence most favorably for the plaintiff from the position of the injured party just before and at the time of the accident, rejecting all evidence favorable to the defendant. The jury had a right to so consider the evidence, and the reviewing court must so consider it. Kirksey v. Southern Traction Co., 110 Tex. 190, 217 S. W. 139; Barron v. Houston, E. & W. T. Ry. Co. (Tex. Com. App.) 249 S. W. 825. We think, as to whether or not the deceased, under all the circumstances surrounding him at the time, was guilty of contributory negligence, was clearly, under the well-settled law of this state, a -question of fact for the determination of the jury. Freeman v. G., H. & S. A. Ry. Co. (Tex. Com. App.) 285 S. W. 607; G., H. & S. A. Ry. Co. v. Duty (Tex. Com. App.) 277 S. W. 1058; Emberlin v. Wichita Ry. Co. (Tex. Com. App.) 267 S. W. 463; Lancaster v. Browder (Tex. *188 Com. App.) 256 S. W. 905; Barron v. Houston, E. & W. T. Ry. Co., supra; St. Louis, S. F. & T. Ry. Co. v.

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Bluebook (online)
9 S.W.2d 185, 1928 Tex. App. LEXIS 777, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/texas-electric-ry-co-v-texas-employers-ins-texapp-1928.