Tuger v. Audubon Insurance

152 So. 2d 354, 1963 La. App. LEXIS 1549
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 29, 1963
DocketNo. 5784
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 152 So. 2d 354 (Tuger v. Audubon Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tuger v. Audubon Insurance, 152 So. 2d 354, 1963 La. App. LEXIS 1549 (La. Ct. App. 1963).

Opinion

LANDRY, Judge.

This action arises out of an intersectional automobile accident which occurred on December 6, 1959, a short distance outside the city limits of Hammond, Louisiana, at the junction of Easy and Iowa Streets, which thoroughfares intersect each other at right angles.

Plaintiff, Helen Tuger, accompanied by her guest passengers, W. M. Stevens, Mrs. Irene Troyan and the minors, David and Frances Troyan, was proceeding easterly on Iowa Street, a two lane, gravel street, while defendant, Mrs. Irene Davis (insured of defendant, Audubon Insurance Company) was driving northerly on Easy Street, a two lane blacktopped street. The accident occurred in the southeast quadrant of the intersection, the front of defendant’s 1959 Ford automobile striking the right side of plaintiff’s 1953 Chevrolet.

The several plaintiffs herein are: (1) John Tuger, husband of Mrs. Helen Tuger, who seeks recovery of damages to the [356]*356Tuger vehicle; (2) Mrs. Helen Tuger, who asks damages for personal injuries; (3) Mrs. Irene Troyan, who prays for judgment for personal injuries; (4) Andrew Troyan (husband of Mrs. Irene Troyan and father of the minors, David and Frances Troyan), who, although not a passenger in the Tuger vehicle, sues in his individual capacity, for medical expense incurred in treatment of the injuries sustained by his wife and children and additionally litigates in his representative capacity as administrator of the estates of his said minor children seeking recovery for injuries sustained by them in the accident.

Defendant’s insurer, Audubon Insurance Company, filed a reconventional demand praying for judgment for the amount of property damage to defendant’s automobile paid by said insurer under its collision policy covering the Davis vehicle, to which claim Audubon was duly subrogated. In addition, Audubon filed a third party demand against Allstate Insurance Company, liability insurer of the Tuger vehicle. To said third party demand, defendant therein, Allstate filed: (1) a plea of prescription; (2) an exception of no cause of action based on the contention that at the time of defendant’s filing the third party petition such a demand was not available among alleged joint tort-feasors unless they were sued jointly; and (3) an exception of no right of action predicated upon certain releases taken from plaintiffs by the alleged co-tort feasor, Allstate.

The trial below resulted in judgment in favor of all plaintiffs excepting W. M. Stevens, occupant of the Tuger vehicle, whose claim was rejected. The reconven-tional demand of Audubon Insurance Company was also rejected by the court below. It appears that the third party demand of Audubon was not passed upon by the trial court and is not urged on appeal. It follows that said demand may not be considered by this court.

Defendants, Audubon Insurance Company and Mrs. Irene Davis, have appealed. None of the plaintiffs have appealed or answered defendants’ appeal. The failure of plaintiff, W. M. Stevens, to appeal precludes our review of the judgment of the trial court rejecting his demands.

In substance plaintiffs allege the accident in question resulted solely by virtue of the negligence of Mrs. Davis in the following respects: (1) traveling at an excessive speed; (2) failure to maintain a proper lookout; and (3) failure to accord Mrs. Tuger the right of way which the latter allegedly acquired by preemption, it being conceded the intersection in question was not controlled by either stop sign or signal ■ light.

In defense of plaintiffs’ actions, defendants maintain Mrs. Davis was free of negligence and that the sole proximate cause of the collision was the negligence of Mrs. Tuger in traveling at an excessive speed, failure to maintain a proper lookout, failure to have her vehicle under control, and failing to accord Mrs. Davis the right of way to which she was entitled considering the latter approached the intersection from the former’s right. Alternatively, defendants contend Mrs. Tuger was guilty of contributory negligence in the foregoing respects.

Defendants, in brief, advance three specifications of error, namely: (1) The trial court erred in holding Mrs. Davis guilty of negligence constituting a proximate cause of the accident; (2) The lower coui't fell into error in concluding that Mrs. Tuger was free of negligence and contributory negligence proximately causing the accident; arid (3) the court below erred in admitting the testimony of Dr. Eric Lensgraf, a chiropractor, who had not been qualified as an expert witness.

The contending parties are, for all practical purposes, in agreement concerning the occurrence of the accident except as hereinafter otherwise noted.

Defendant, Irene Davis, testified she has had 20 years driving experience. At the [357]*357time of the accident she was proceeding from her home situated on Easy Street approximately one-half block south of the intersection of Iowa Street. She was traveling approximately 15-20 miles per hour in the right northbound lane. As she approached the intersection she observed no approaching vehicle notwithstanding she looked both right and left. She was fully aware of the presence of a small store building situated near the southwest corner of the intersection (to her left, the direction from which the Tuger vehicle was approaching) and knew that the building obstructed, to some extent, her view to the west. Mrs. Davis frankly admitted that she did not see the Tuger Chevrolet until the moment of impact. Her car pushed the Tuger automobile toward the northeast corner of the intersection at which point the Chevrolet turned over on its left side in the ditch near the end of a culvert. Mrs. Davis recalled little else regarding the occurrence of the accident.

Mrs. Helen Tuger, testified she was proceeding slowly eastward on Iowa Street at an estimated speed of 15 miles per hour or less. Her testimony is unequivocally to the effect that she first saw the approaching Davis vehicle when she, Mrs. Tuger, was in the approximate center of the intersection and at this time the Davis car was then approximately 100 feet distant. Believing that she had ample time to pass through the intersection she accelerated slightly and was struck when she had virtually completed the intersection. The Davis Ford struck her car toward its right rear. Following the impact the Davis car continued to push her automobile toward the northeast corner of the intersection. Eventually her automobile went into the ditch and tipped over on its left side.

William M. Stevens, 78 year old guest passenger seated on the front seat of the Tuger vehicle, in substance testified his host driver was proceeding at approximately 20 miles per hour. As did Mrs. Tuger he also testified that when the Chevrolet was approximately half way through the intersection he observed the Davis Ford approximately 100 feet distant. Stevens- felt the impact near the rear of the vehicle. He also stated the store building did not prevent either driver from seeing the other vehicle approaching.

Mrs. Irene Troyan testified she was seated on the left side of the rear seat of the Tuger automobile with her children, Frances and David. After the Tuger automobile entered the intersection, Mrs. Troyan noted the approaching Davis car. Concerning the distance of the Davis vehicle she stated: “Well, I doubt if she was 100 feet, around between that, or a little bit over.” At various times in her testimony she estimated the Davis car was from 75 to 125 feet distant when she observed it. Mrs. Troyan could not estimate Mrs. Davis’ speed.

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Bluebook (online)
152 So. 2d 354, 1963 La. App. LEXIS 1549, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tuger-v-audubon-insurance-lactapp-1963.