Traders & General Ins. Co. v. Gentry

267 S.W.2d 213, 1954 Tex. App. LEXIS 2459
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 19, 1954
DocketNo. 15492
StatusPublished

This text of 267 S.W.2d 213 (Traders & General Ins. Co. v. Gentry) 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
Traders & General Ins. Co. v. Gentry, 267 S.W.2d 213, 1954 Tex. App. LEXIS 2459 (Tex. Ct. App. 1954).

Opinion

BOYD, Justice.

This suit was filed by appellee J. C. Gentry against appellant Traders & General Insurance Company to- set aside an award of the Industrial Accident Board and to recover a lump sum payment -for total and permanent disability alleged to have resulted from .an electrical shock suffered by him on July 16, 1952. The jury found that appellee sustained total and permanent disability and that his compensation should -be paid in a lump sum. Judgment was rendered accordingly and appeal was perfected.

By its first and second points of error appellant says that the court erred in admitting the testimony of Dr. Parnell that appellee suffered injury and damage to his brain, and that the court erred in overruling its motion for a mistrial after such testimony, because appellee’s pleadings did not authorize the admission of such testimony, and appellant was not put upon notice that appellee claimed any such injury, and was thereby denied an opportunity to refute such evidence. Appellee counters that his pleadings were sufficient to authorize such testimony ; and that appellee did not introduce any such evidence from the witness, and when he offered to do so the court sustained appellant’s objection and that the only testimony on that point by the witness was elicited by appellant. Appellee’s allegations as to injuries are as follows: “The plaintiff was attempting to raise a cattle guard with the use of a winch line on a truck, when the driver of the truck backed the same into a highline which, at the time, was charged with approximately 7500 volts of electricity, with the result that the plaintiff was knocked unconscious and fell, striking his head, and the electric shock, coupled with the fall, burned his entire body causing a paralysing shock throughout his entire body, paralysing the plaintiff’s right hand and burning both of his feet and causing the plaintiff to suffer a highly nervous condition, as well as internal injuries [214]*214and headaches, which has gendered the plaintiff totally unfit to do the work of an ordinary laboring man, which condition has been and will be permanent, and hence, the plaintiff has been totally and permanently disabled within the meaning of the Workmen’s Compensation Act [Vernon’s Ann.Civ.St. art. 8306 et seq.].”

Appellee asked the physician whether it was reasonably probable that appellee had some brain injury and injury to the brain tissues as a result of the electrical shock. Appellant objected that there were no pleadings authorizing the reception of such evidence and the objection was sustained. Then appellee propounded this question: “Doctor Parnell, state what in your opinion is this man’s condition with reference to his nervous system which was caused by this electrical shock which he received out there.” The witness answered: “I think his nervous system is wrecked, and I think he- has brain damage, definitely.” Appellant, moved for a mistrial, which was denied, and then asked the court to instruct the jury not to consider the statement made by the witness. The court instructed the jury not to consider the answer of the witness with reference to damage to appellee’s brain. Appellee then proved by the witness, without objection, that the brain is a part of the nervous system. The witness testified that appellee was totally and permanently disabled.

Under questioning by appellant, the witness testified that the electrical shock had impaired appellee’s nervous system, and that condition, together with burns on his hand and feet, caused him to be unable to do ordinary labor.

Appellant asked the witness the following questions and he made the following answers:

“Q. Doctor Parnell, do you base your testimony with reference to the disability of this man on an impairment of his entire nervous system? A. Yes.
“Q. It is based in part on an impairment of his entire nervous, system? A. Yes,-that’s right.
“Q. And when you say entire nervous, system do you include in that impairment and damage to the brain ? A.. He has got some damage to the brain all right.
“Q. You didn’t understand my question. A. Yes, I did, and I answered it.
“Q. In making that do you include in it damage and impairment of the brain? A. Yes, sir, he has some impairment of the brain.
“Q. You have answered that three times. My question. was do you include in that, in forming your opinion, impairment and damage to the brain? A. Yes, certainly. The brain is part of the nervous system.
“Q. That was my question. * * *
* * * * * *
“Q. How about his headaches; what causes that? A. That is due to his damage — I think that is due to a brain damage. I think he has a damage of brain tissue.”

In our view of this, matter, we believe it is unnecessary to determine whether ap-pellee’s pleadings authorized the admission of testimony relating to , brain impairment or damage. As we construe this record, appellee’s effort to prove such injury was effectually blocked by appellant’s objections and' the rulings of the court. What evidence there is in the record touching any brain impairment or damage was either elicited by appellant or voluntarily supplied by the witness.

We believe we understand appellant’s contention that it was not proving brain impairment or damage but it was only undertaking to show that appellee’s expert witness, in forming his estimate of ap-pellee’s disability, took into consideration impairment and damage to appellee’s brain, and that he was not authorized to do so; but we are unable to agree with appellant that evidence of brain impairment and damage was not in the record in such way as to be properly considered by the physician in estimating appellee’s disability. If the witness’ testimony , on that point under ap[215]*215pellant’s interrogation was unresponsive and voluntary, it was nevertheless in the record, with no effort being made to withdraw it from the consideration of the jury until after both sides had closed.

After all the evidence had been introduced and before the charge had been prepared, appellant moved to strike the testimony of Dr. Parnell as to appellee’s brain damage and as to injury to his nervous system, and his testimony bearing upon the issue of total and permanent disability; .and in the alternative for a mistrial or postponement of the case so as to enable •it to procure medical testimony on the issue of appellee’s brain impairment. These motions were all overruled.

Considering the manner in which the testimony complained of got into the record after the court instructed the jury not to consider the statement made when the witness was being interrogated by ap-pellee, we feel that we are not warranted in holding that the court’s refusal to grant the motions to strike the testimony of the physician as to brain impairment and injury to the nervous system, and to grant a mistrial or postponement, was such an abuse of discretion as to require a reversal of the case, if indeed it was any abuse of discretion at all. 41-B Tex.Jur., p. 160, sec. 134 and p. 191, sec. 160, and cases there cited.

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267 S.W.2d 213, 1954 Tex. App. LEXIS 2459, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/traders-general-ins-co-v-gentry-texapp-1954.