Westholm v. Pratt

200 P.2d 536, 89 Cal. App. 2d 272, 1948 Cal. App. LEXIS 1030
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 22, 1948
DocketCiv. No. 16366
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 200 P.2d 536 (Westholm v. Pratt) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Westholm v. Pratt, 200 P.2d 536, 89 Cal. App. 2d 272, 1948 Cal. App. LEXIS 1030 (Cal. Ct. App. 1948).

Opinion

WOOD, J.

Plaintiff appeals from the judgment entered upon a verdict in favor of defendants, in this action for [273]*273damages for wrongful death of plaintiff’s husband, who died as a result of being struck by an automobile driven by defendant Pratt and by an automobile driven by defendant Fluhrer. She also appeals from an order denying her motion for a new trial. The appeal has been dismissed, upon stipulation, as to defendant Fluhrer. Defendant Pratt will be referred to as the defendant.

Appellant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support the judgment. She argues that there was no evidence of contributory negligence on the part of decedent, and that defendant was guilty of negligence as a matter of law.

The accident occurred on February 3, 1946, about 7 p. m., at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Micheltorena Street in Los Angeles. About 6:45 p. m. on that day, Mr. Westholm left his home on Micheltorena Street, north of Sunset Boulevard, intending to board a streetcar at the intersection. Micheltorena Street intersects Sunset Boulevard on the north only—there is no intersecting street on the south side of Sunset Boulevard at or near this intersection. Sunset Boulevard is 76 feet wide, is paved, and is divided by white lines into four vehicular-traffic lanes—two for eastbound traffic and two for westbound traffic. Near the center of the boulevard there are two streetcar tracks—one for eastbound cars and one for westbound cars. A passenger safety zone, which is designated by white lines on the pavement, is near the south rail of the eastbound car track, and adjoins the west entrance of the intersection.

Defendant testified that he was driving east on Sunset Boulevard at a rate of speed between 20 and 25 miles an hour; that as he approached the said intersection—when he was about 60 feet west of the safety zone—he observed the safety zone reflector buttons and the white marker or diagonal line which extends west from the west end of the zone, and then, in order to pass to the left or north side of the safety zone, he turned his automobile to his left and across the eastbound car track so that the right wheels of his automobile were just north of the south rail of the eastbound car track; that when he was about 3 feet west of the east end of the safety zone, a man standing in the zone seemed to be leaning to the north out into the street, and the right front fender of defendant’s automobile struck him; that the body rolled on the hood of the automobile and then rolled off the right side of the hood; that after the impact the defendant parked his [274]*274automobile at the south curb of Sunset Boulevard and went back to give assistance to the injured man, Mr. Westholm, who was. lying in the street; that defendant then saw an automobile coming east in the same traffic lane he had traveled and he waved his arms trying to stop the other automobile but the automobile hit Mr. Westholm and ran over his body. (The driver of the other automobile was the defendant Fluhrer.) Defendant testified further that the street was wet at the time of the accident; that he did not remember whether it was raining at that particular time; that it was a dark night, and the visibility was poor; that he first saw Mr. Westholm a split second before the impact. He also testified that as a result of the impact there was a dent on his automobile between the right headlight and the grill of the hood, and a dent in the middle of the hood, and a crack in the glass of the right headlight.

Mr. Ferguson, a student, called as a witness by appellant, testified that he also was driving an automobile east on Sunset Boulevard at the time of the accident; that he and the defendant stopped their automobiles at the same time at a stop sign at Maltman Street, which is two long blocks west of the scene of the accident; that after leaving that place he (witness) traveled at a rate between 25 and 30 miles an hour, and that the defendant was about 75 yards ahead of him after he (witness) had traveled the first block; that as defendant traveled toward the Mieheltorena intersection his automobile was in the lane next to the center of Sunset Boulevard; that when defendant’s automobile was approaching the markers west of the safety zone the left wheels of his automobile were on the south rail of the eastbound car track; that when defendant was about 10 feet west of the west end of the zone he made a sharp left turn and thereafter the front wheels of his automobile hit the safety zone buttons, and then it appeared as if he went back into the safety zone, and then he (witness) saw a body fly in the air; that he (witness) did not see the man until he went into the air; that he (witness) did not stop at the scene of the accident; and that he could see fairly well on Sunset Boulevard that night.

Mr. Rutledge, a student, called as a witness by appellant, testified that he was riding with Mr. Ferguson; that he saw defendant’s automobile bounce off the “stop” in the west end of the safety zone while it was traveling at a rate of speed between 30 and 35 miles an hour, and then he saw a man fly up [275]*275in the air; that a few seconds before the man was struck he saw him standing on the north edge of the safety zone ‘ ‘ about in the middle” of the zone.

Mrs. Berkeley, a witness called by appellant, testified that she and her husband were traveling east on Sunset Boulevard at the time and place of the accident, and that her husband was driving and she was in the right front seat; that she first noticed defendant’s automobile when it turned to go to the left of the safety zone; that defendant went onto the car track and when he hit the track he swerved back into the safety zone and hit Mr. Westholm and threw him into the air; that just before Mr. Westholm was hit she saw him standing in the safety zone; that defendant’s automobile at the time of the accident was going a little faster than 30 miles an hour; and that after defendant’s automobile hit Mr. Westholm another automobile hit him.

Mr. Muller, a commander in the Navy, testified, by way of deposition taken on behalf of defendant, that he was riding in the front seat with defendant Pratt, who was taking him to the union station; that as they approached the said intersection they were traveling about midway between the eastbound ear track and the south curb of Sunset Boulevard; that as they approached the diagonal white line west of the safety zone defendant turned the automobile to the left or north of that line and onto the car track and did not cross that line at any time; that the right wheels of the automobile were then probably a little to the right of the south rail of the car track, and the automobile proceeded straight on Sunset Boulevard and did not at any time go into the safety zone; that when the automobile had passed about one-half of the safety zone he suddenly noticed Mr. Westholm going across in front of the automobile toward the north, and in a split second the automobile hit him; and that at the time of the accident there was a drizzly rain, the street was wet, and the visibility was not good.

Appellant argues that the only conclusion that can reasonably be drawn from the evidence is that the defendant negligently operated his automobile in violation of sections 525 and 572 of the Vehicle Code, that he did not maintain a proper lookout, and that he struck decedent, who was not at all negligent, while he was in the safety zone.

As to the alleged violation of section 525 of the Vehicle Code, appellant argues that defendant violated the section by [276]

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Fultz v. Griffin
197 Cal. App. 2d 397 (California Court of Appeal, 1961)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
200 P.2d 536, 89 Cal. App. 2d 272, 1948 Cal. App. LEXIS 1030, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/westholm-v-pratt-calctapp-1948.