Wright v. Jet Equipment & Tools, Inc.

846 So. 2d 322, 2002 Ala. LEXIS 297
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedSeptember 27, 2002
Docket1011128
StatusPublished

This text of 846 So. 2d 322 (Wright v. Jet Equipment & Tools, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wright v. Jet Equipment & Tools, Inc., 846 So. 2d 322, 2002 Ala. LEXIS 297 (Ala. 2002).

Opinion

LYONS, Justice.

Heath Wright and his parents, Betty [325]*325Wright and Solomon Wright,1 sued Donald Spivey, Jerry Peacock, and others, on theories of negligence and wantonness for injuries Heath sustained while operating a stationary spindle wood shaper in a building-construction class at a public school. Peacock and Spivey each moved for a summary judgment, arguing, among other things, that they were entitled to State-agent immunity. The trial court denied their summary-judgment motions. Peacock and Spivey petitioned this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the trial court to enter a summary judgment for them on the basis that they are entitled to State-agent immunity. We grant the petition and issue the writ.

Facts

Jerry Peacock is a vocational teacher and Donald Spivey is the career and technical director at the Houston County Career and Technical Center (“the vocational center”). During the week of August 20, 1999, Peacock’s class, in which Heath Wright was a student, was making raised-panel doors. As part of the project, the students were to use a model W-SS3 spindle wood shaper manufactured by Jet Equipment and Tools, Inc., to make straight cuts on three sides of a board and an arched cut on the fourth side. The shaper has “infeed” and “outfeed” “fences” positioned lengthwise on the right and left sides of the blade, respectively, from the perspective of the operator. The fences assist the operator in guiding the wood into the blade.

The owner’s manual for the shaper states: “Keep guards in place and in working order” and “Never perform shaping operation with safety guard removed.” Under the heading, “Shaping When Using the Fence as a Guide,” the owner’s manual states, “shaping with the fence is the safest and most satisfactory method of working and this method should always be used when the work permits. Almost all straight work can be used with the fence.” Peacock testified that he had not read the owner’s manual for this specific shaper because the shaper was transferred from another school and the owner’s manual did not come with it. He testified, however, that he had read the owner’s manual for a smaller shaper he had ordered. A label affixed to the shaper with the heading “SAFETY RULES” also states, in part, “CAREFULLY READ INSTRUCTION MANUAL BEFORE OPERATING MACHINE,” and “DO NOT OPERATE WITHOUT ALL GUARDS AND COVERS IN POSITION.” (Capitalization in original.)

Peacock’s class used a textbook titled Modem Cabinetmaking. Peacock photocopied portions of the textbook for the students to read. Peacock testified in his deposition that he had reviewed the entire textbook. The textbook includes a discussion of spindle shapers similar to the one that injured Heath. The textbook’s directions for installing the spindle shaper include the following:

“Install a point of operation guard. One is the clear plastic spindle guard.... It fits on the spindle under the washer and rotates with the cutter. Another is the ring guard which is clamped to the table and positioned just above the cutter and spindle.”

Immediately following this statement is a section titled “Shaper Setup and Operation”; that section states:

[326]*326“There are a number of options for operating a spindle shaper. These include using:
“1. Fences.
“2. A collar and starting pin.
“3. A collar, starting pin, and template.
“4. Various jigs.”

Following this statement is a discussion titled “Shaping with fences,” which begins, “Install infeed and outfeed fences when cutting straight edges.” Following this discussion of the use of fences is a section titled “Shaping with a collar and starting pin,” which includes the following:

“A collar and starting pin are used when the fence is not appropriate. This may be for shaping irregular curves.
[[Image here]]
“A ring guard or plastic spindle mounted guard must be attached....
[[Image here]]
“The procedure for setting up and using a collar and starting pin is as follows:
[[Image here]]
“2. Install the diameter collar which will give you the depth of cut desired. The collar should be above the cutter. This is generally safer.
[[Image here]]
“4. Thread a starting pin into a hole on the shaper table on the infeed side of the cutter.
[[Image here]]
“7. Install the ring guard within 1/4 in. (6 mm) of the upper workpiece surface.
“8. Turn the spindle by hand to be sure it spins freely. It must not touch the guard.... ”

Moreover, in a chapter titled “Health and Safety,” the textbook also states:

“Point of Operation (PO) guards protect your hands or body from the cutting tool. They also protect the operator from flying chips.... PO guards are made of metal or high impact plastic. Clear plastic allows you to observe your work safely. Often PO guarding is moved for tool setup or adjustments and must be reinstalled. A majority of accidents occur when PO guards have not been positioned correctly. New machinery is required to have PO guards. Retrofit older equipment with PO guards.”

Peacock testified in his deposition that he had written the courses of study for building-construction technology, carpentry, and eabinetmaking in “Alabama Course of Study: Trade & Industrial Education” (“the Course of Study”), a manual published by the State Department of Education. The building-construction technology section of the Course of Study states: “Students will ... [a]pply safety rules, regulations, and procedures.” The Course of Study then lists types and sources of such safety rules including regulations promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”). It is undisputed that OSHA regulations concerning woodworking machines are not binding as a matter of law in Alabama public schools. However, Peacock testified, “[W]e use their standards as a good practice.” The following regulations promulgated by OSHA were in effect at the time of the accident:

“ § 1910.212 General requirements for all machines.
“(a) Machine guarding — (1) Types of guarding. One or more methods of machine guarding shall be provided to protect the operator and other employees from the machine area from hazards such as those created by point of operation ....
[[Image here]]
“(3) Point of operation guarding, (i) Point of operation is the area on a machine where work is actually performed upon the material being processed.
[327]*327“(ii) The point of operation in machines whose operation exposes an employee to injury, shall be guarded. The guarding device shall be in conformity with any appropriate standard therefor, or in the absence of applicable specific standards, shall be so designed and constructed as to prevent the operator from having any part of his body in the danger zone during the operating cycle.

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Bluebook (online)
846 So. 2d 322, 2002 Ala. LEXIS 297, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wright-v-jet-equipment-tools-inc-ala-2002.