Yeager v. Miller

240 So. 2d 221, 286 Ala. 380, 1970 Ala. LEXIS 927
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedOctober 1, 1970
Docket6 Div. 790
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 240 So. 2d 221 (Yeager v. Miller) 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
Yeager v. Miller, 240 So. 2d 221, 286 Ala. 380, 1970 Ala. LEXIS 927 (Ala. 1970).

Opinions

BLOODWORTH, Justice.

This is an appeal by plaintiff from a jury verdict-in favor of defendant. Plaintiff sought damages in her complaint for personal injuries which she alleged were proximately caused by the negligence and wanton conduct of defendant.

The assignments of error argued on this appeal relate to the giving of certain written charges for the defendant and to the action of the trial court in sustaining objections to testimony as to whether the odor of alcohol was strong or weak on defendant’s breath.

The basis for the suit is an accident which occurred on December 23, 1968 at approximately 10:45 p. m. at the intersection of 12th Street and 26th Avenue in the City of Tuscaloosa. 12th Street runs east and west and 26th Avenue north and south. Both streets are paved and contain two traffic lanes. The street on which plaintiff was traveling (26th Avenue) was unmarked by any traffic control sign. The street on which defendant was traveling (12th Street) had a “yield” sign at the entrance to the intersection. The speed limit in the area was 25 miles per hour.

Plaintiff was traveling south on 26th Avenue and proceeded into the intersection without looking to her right before entering it. She was on her way to work. Plaintiff did not know her speed nor that of defendant. Defendant was enroute home with his nine-year-old daughter from the office of Southern Distributing Company where he is employed as Manager. His wife had driven ahead to make a night bank deposit. As he approached the intersection he was traveling east on 12th Street at a speed of 15 to 20 miles per hour and says he slowed to 10 miles per hour at the intersection. He testified he looked to his left and right but saw no moving traffic. He did not stop at the “yield” sign but proceeded into the intersection. At the time plaintiff’s car entered the intersection she noticed defendant’s car approaching from her right and immediately applied her brakes. Her car collided with the left rear of defendant’s car. Plaintiff contends both cars entered the intersection at about the same time. Defendant testified he had almost crossed the intersection when his car was struck by plaintiff’s car. The impact knocked defendant’s car around and it came to rest facing the direction from which he had come. Plaintiff’s car came to rest at the southeast corner of the intersection.

After the collision, defendant began driving his car away. The plaintiff yelled to him to stop. He did so, parking his car down the street. Photographs of the scene of the accident tended to show skid marks left by plaintiff’s vehicle for a distance of 40 feet on the east side of 26th Avenue. Photographs of the vehicles tended to show [383]*383damage to the front of plaintiff’s car and to the left rear of defendant’s car.

After the accident, plaintiff testified defendant had the odor of alcohol on his breath and stated, “I think he was drinking heavy.” Officer Robbins testified he smelled the odor of “an alcoholic beverage” on defendant’s breath. Officer Tinsley also testified he smelled “a slight odor of alcohol” on defendant’s breath. Defendant admitted to two drinks of whiskey over a period of several hours with his drivers because it was the last work night before Christmas.

Plaintiff suffered a fractured foot as a result of the accident which was treated by being placed in a cast. Later, a bone graft was performed on her foot.

In assignment of error No. 2 plaintiff contends that the trial court erred in giving the defendant’s charge No. 21 which reads as follows:

“21. The court further charges the jury that the defendant had the right, until the contrary appeared, to assume that the plaintiff would obey the law and would not operate her vehicle in excess of 25 miles per hour and had the right to act on that assumption.”

Evidence of the speed limit in the area of the accident was given during the cross-examination of Police Officer W. V. Robbins who testified that it “is a residential area,” where there “is a twenty-five mile per hour speed limit.”

No objection was made to this testimony nor was there any effort made to clarify or elaborate on it, nor to show whether this speed limit was established by Rules of the Road or by City ordinance.

Plaintiff contends this charge invades the province of the jury because it removed from their consideration the lawfulness of plaintiff’s speed under the facts of the case. Plaintiff admits, however, that the part of the charge that plaintiff would obey the law is a correct statement of law. She further contends the charge amounts to the affirmative charge as to the lawfulness of plaintiff’s speed.

We do not think this charge invades the province of the jury, nor that it constitutes the affirmative charge. If it is deemed misleading or incomplete, plaintiff should have requested an explanatory charge. Alabama Power Company v. Smith, 273 Ala. 509, 524, 142 So.2d 228, 242. We there held:

“If, however, Charges 12 and 13 be deemed incomplete and, therefore, misleading, giving them was not reversible error. ‘It is not necessarily reversible error to give ambiguous or misleading charges; proper explanatory instructions should be given at request of party supposing himself prejudiced thereby.’ Birmingham Southern R. Co. v. Harrison, 203 Ala. 284, 291, 82 So. 534, 541. * * ”

Moreover, the court orally charged the jury as follows:

“ * * * Any person driving a vehicle on a highway shall drive the same at a careful and prudent speed not greater than is reasonable and proper, having due regard to the traffic, surface and width of the highway and of any other conditions then existing and no persons shall drive any vehicle upon a highway at such speed as to endanger the life, limb or property of any person. * * * ”

No exceptions were taken to this portion of the oral charge. In our judgment the giving of charge No. 21 did not constitute reversible error.

We do not consider any of the cases cited by plaintiff in support of this assignment of error to militate against this result.

In assignment of error No. 1 plaintiff complains of the giving of defendant’s charge No. 20 which both parties admit is very similar to charge No. 21. They both assign the same argument in support thereof. We therefore consider our discussion of assignment of error No. 2 answers assignment of error No. 1.

[384]*384In assignment of error No. 7 plaintiff maintains the trial court erred in giving at the request of the defendant the following written charge:

“34. The court charges the jury that the presence of a Yield sign at an intersection does not require the driver of a vehicle facing it to stop when he reaches the intersection, but if there is no other vehicle approaching or entering the intersection at approximately the same time, he may lawfully proceed to enter the intersection without stopping even though a vehicle may be approaching the intersection on the favored street. After he has so entered the intersection, he then has the right-of-way and the approaching vehicle on the favored street must use due care to avoid colliding with him in the intersection.”

Defendant summarizes appellant’s contentions in his brief:

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

Related

Whaley v. Whaley
218 So. 3d 360 (Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama, 2016)
Ingram v. State
779 So. 2d 1225 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama, 1999)
Kuenzel v. State
577 So. 2d 474 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama, 1990)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
240 So. 2d 221, 286 Ala. 380, 1970 Ala. LEXIS 927, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/yeager-v-miller-ala-1970.