Coffee County v. Jordan
Coffee County v. Jordan
Opinion of the Court
Mrs. Odessa E. Jordan, J. H. Edenfield, Mrs. Alline E. Persons, Mrs. Cannie Lewis, and Delmer Edenfield brought an action for damages against Tim Davis and Coffee County, Georgia, in Atkinson Superior Court. The suit was based on alleged negligence of Coffee County resulting in the death of the plaintiffs’ mother, Mrs. Stella Edenfield.
The petition as amended showed in substance the following: that Coffee County is a political subdivision of the State of Georgia and within the jurisdiction of tliis State; that Tim Davis is a resident of Atkinson County, Georgia; that said petitioners have a right of action against said defendants because of their joint negligence in causing the death of their mother, Mrs. Stella M. Edenfield; that petitioners have authority to bring this action because they are all of the children of Mrs. Edenfield and their father was not living at the time the action was instituted.
The petition further alleged: that Mrs. Edenfield had con-
The petition further alleged that the acts of Tim Davis were negligent, and the joint negligence of the defendants was the proximate cause of Mrs. Edenfield’s death; and that, therefore, they were jointly and severally liable.
The defendant Coffee County filed general and special demur
1. Coffee County, one of the defendants, demurred on the ground that “said petition does not set forth any cause of action against this defendant, as it is apparent from the allegations of the petition that no joint cause of action is alleged against the said Tim Davis and Coffee County, Georgia,, in that no negligence is alleged in said petition, on the part of Coffee County, and it appears from the petition that Coffee County, Georgia, and Tim Davis are not joint tortfeasors, and because, neither said petition nor any paragraph thereof, state facts sufficient to constitute a joint cause of action against these defendants.”
It was alleged in the petition that the plaintiffs’ mother was injured because of certain specific acts of negligence of Tim Davis and Coffee County. “The rule which does not .permit a joint action against two or more persons or corporations for injuries sustained from their independent conduct does not prevent the maintenance of a joint suit, even though actual, voluntary, and intentional concert of action on the part of the defendants is lacking, if their separate acts of negligence combine naturally and directly to produce the single injury.” Jolly v. City of Atlanta, 37 Ga. App. 666 (141 S. E. 223). It was a jury question whether the defendants were guilty of negligence, and if so, whether the negligent acts of both contributed naturally and concurrently in bringing about the injury to the plaintiff. Callahan v. Cofield, 61 Ga. App. 780 (7 S. E. 2d 592); Georgia Ry. &c. Co. v. Ryan, 24 Ga. App. 288 (100 S. E. 713); Akin v. Brantley, 26 Ga. App. 326 (106 S. E. 214).
2. ' The defendant county demurred generally on the ground that the petition did not set forth sufficient facts to constitute a cause of action.
(a) The defendant contended that the petition showed that Tim Davis was the agent of the deceased, or that Davis and the deceased were engaging in a joint enterprise. The petition did not disclose facts sufficient to establish the relationship of agency or joint enterprise between Mrs. Edenfield and Tim Davis. Therefore, she had no duty to control the driver’s conduct. For the negligence of the driver to be imputable to a passenger, the
(b) The defendant county urges that its general demurrer should have been sustained because the petition disclosed that the deceased did not exercise ordinary care for the preservation of her own safety at the time of the occurrence which was alleged to have resulted in the death of the deceased. It is Coffee County’s position that Mrs. Edenfield was under a duty to warn the driver of the vehicle in which she was riding as it approached and went upon the bridge that his speed was excessive. Such contentions are matters of defense, and an action will not be dismissed on general demurrer on such ground unless the petition affirmatively discloses facts from which such conclusion would be demanded as a matter of law. Collins v. Augusta-Aiken Ry. &c. Corp., 13 Ga. App. 124 (2) (78 S. E. 944); King Hardware Co. v. Ennis, 39 Ga. App. 355, 365 (147 S. E. 119). It can not be said that the petition in this case disclosed facts which would demand a finding that Mrs. Edenfield did not use reasonable care for her own safety. Therefore, the defendant’s contention is without merit.
(c) The defendant Coffee County insists that its general demurrer should have been sustained for the reason that it is apparent from the allegations of the petition that negligence on its part was not the proximate cause of Mrs. Edenfield’s death. In this connection the defendant contends that, had Mrs. Eden-field not jumped from the truck, she would not have been injured and therefore the acts of the defendant were not the proximate cause of the injuries. “Except in plain and indisputable cases, what negligence as well as whose negligence constitutes the proximate cause of an injury is for determination by the jury under proper instructions from the court.”
(d) The petition alleged that Coffee County, having removed the flooring from the bridge, negligently left the bridge in a defective and dangerous condition, and failed to place a barricade or warning on the bridge to warn the public of its condition; that officers and agents of the county had knowledge of the defects; and that these defects, together with Davis’s negligence, were the proximate cause of the injuries to the deceased. The
3. Other grounds of the general demurrers are based on the contention that the negligence of the defendant was not the proximate cause of the injuries to the deceased; and that the petition did not allege sufficient acts of negligence on the part of the defendant to constitute a cause of action. These questions have been discussed in other divisions of this opinion.
4. Several special grounds of the defendant’s special demurrer were met by amendment to the petition. We have carefully considered the other grounds of the special demurrer and have reached the conclusion that they are without merit.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.