Williams v. Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc.

214 S.W.2d 307, 1948 Tex. App. LEXIS 1490
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedOctober 22, 1948
DocketNo. 2689.
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 214 S.W.2d 307 (Williams v. Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc.) 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
Williams v. Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc., 214 S.W.2d 307, 1948 Tex. App. LEXIS 1490 (Tex. Ct. App. 1948).

Opinion

GRISSOM, Chief Justice.

J. T. Williams sued Merchants Fast Motor Lines, Inc., for damages. The court rendered judgment for the defendant,'based upon the findings of a jury, and Williams ffias appealed.

Williams alleged, that a wooden crate containing iron clevises fell out of appellee’s van; that he was traveling behind the van and his automobile hit the crate and the collision caused him to be injured and his automobile damaged. He alleged appellee was guilty of negligence in permitting (1) the rear door of the van to come open, and (2) the crate to fall on the highway in front of his car and that such negligence was the proximate cause of his injury.

The jury found (1) that Williams’ automobile did not collide with the box of clevises; that the driver of appellee’s van {1-b) permitted its rear door to come open, .and (2) a crate to fall from the van; (5) that this was not negligence, and (16) that the collision was the result of an unavoidable accident. The jury’s answer to other issues acquitted appellant of contributory negligence. Still other issues were not answered because they were conditionally submitted. and the .answers to previous questions precluded the necessity of answering them.

Appellant presents thirty-two points asserting the court committed reversible error. The first six are as follows:

“1. The error of the Court in not declaring a mistrial because of the improper conduct of Appellee’s counsel who in his argument to the jury asserted:
“ ‘Dr. * * * tried to impress you that he is a close bosom friend of mihe. : He knows better than that. * * knows that I have no respect for him, or for any testimony that he might give in any Court, or respect for him at any time or any where else.’
“2. The error of the Court in failing to instruct the jury not to consider the improper argument o-f Appellee’s counsel, who in his argument to the jury asserted:
“ ‘Dr. * * * tried to impress you that he is a close bosom friend of mine. He knows better than that. Bill * * * knows that I have no respect for him, or for any testimony that he might give in any Court, or respect for him at any time or anywhere else.’
“3. The error of the Court in failing to instruct the jury not to consider the improper argument of Appellee’s counsel when he stated to the jury:
‘Dr. * * * even went so far as to bring the hospital into it. He is trying to mislead you. He was at one time Chief of Staff out at Hendrick Memorial Hospital. .He wanted to make you think that he is a big shot.’ ■
such argument not being authorized by the record.
“4. The error of the Court in failing to instruct the jury not to consider the improper argument of Appellee’s counsel who in referring to Dr. * * * stated to the jury:
“ ‘We brought Dr. * * * in here. He had seen and examined those X-rays. We only had that bird’s word that they showed injuries.’
such scandalous attack on that physician not being authorized by the record.
“5. The error of the Court in failing to instruct the jury not to consider the improper argument of Appellee’s counsel, who in referring' to Dr. * * * made the statement to the jury not supported by the record that:
“ ‘Williams said he was in Dr. * * * waiting room an hour and a half. What did that old bird say ? “Oh yes, we gave him a thorough check up. We kept him there four or five hours.” ’
“6. • The error of the Court in failing to instruct the: jury .not to consider the improper argument of Appellee’s counsel who in referring to Dr. * * * made the *310 statement to the jury not supported by the record that:
“ ‘In trying to impress you with what a great doctor he is, he tells you that he runs 30 to 40 patients through his clinic every day, to say nothing of his outside practice.
1 don’t believe a word of it.’ said counsel having no right to tell that jury what he believed.”

The only objection made to the argument complained of in Point l.was “counsel has no right to make such statement out of the record about Dr. * * * ” The court stated he would give appellant a bill, whereupon appellant’s counsel excepted because such statement was “hurtful and prejudicial.” The court qualified the bill so that it shows appellant’s doctor witness voluntarily pointed to appellee’s counsel and volunteered the statement that he belonged to the same church as appellee’s eouns.el and that this was also mentioned by appellant’s counsel in his opening argument. Points 1 and 2 omit the immediately preceding part of the portion of argument objected to as shown in his bill of exception, which was :

“When claiming that he and I both belonged to the same church * * * ”

The argument then continued, as shown in points 1 and 2, to the effect that said doctor thus tried to impress the jury with the idea that he and appellee’s counsel' were close friends.

The statement of facts shows the following occurred while appellant’s doctor witness was testifying:

“Appellant’s counsel: Q. You are a member of the First Baptist Church there that has a connection with that hospital? A. Yes, sir; the same as * * * (ap-pellee’s counsel) and Mr. Brown (The Court Reporter).
“Appellant’s Counsel: Q. You and * * * (appellee’s counsel) belong to .the same church there? A. Yes, sir, and Mr. Brown.
“Appellee’s Counsel: I object to that, your Honor.
. “Appellant’s Counsel: I think maybe Judge Black (the trial judge) is in there with you all.”

It is thus shown that appellant elicited from his doctor witness the fact that he was a member of a certain church. The relevancy of this matter is not readily apparent. The witness then volunteered the information that he and appellee’s counsel and the court reporter were all members of the same church. When appellee objected, 'appellant’s counsel volunteered the additional information to the jury that the trial judge was also “in there with you all.”

The first part of the argument complained of in bill of exception number 1, which is the basis of point 1, was a conclusion or inference reasonably deducible from the proceedings shown and, therefore, not improper. Pioneer Mut. Compensation Co. v. Diaz, 142 Tex. 184, 177 S.W.2d 202, 205. Assuming that the remainder of the argument shown in bill number one was improper, reversible error is not shown. If the court had sustained the objection made, he would have, in effect, struck out some argument that was not improper. The applicable rule was stated in McClure v. Fall, Tex.Civ.App., 42 S.W.2d 821, 825, as follows :

“ * * * the above-quoted argument of counsel is but a small part of certain long paragraphs of counsel’s argument as objected to by the plaintiff and set out in the various bills of exceptions.

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214 S.W.2d 307, 1948 Tex. App. LEXIS 1490, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williams-v-merchants-fast-motor-lines-inc-texapp-1948.