Flynn v. Sporl
Flynn v. Sporl
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff, an employe of defendant at his cotton pickery, sues for damages for personal injuries and alleges that on June 24th, 1903, she was directed away from her usual employment by the foreman in charge of the establishment and required to carry baskets filled with cotton to the upper floor, and while she was on her way down to the lower floor she fell to the ground from the stairway used for that purpose and sustained severe injuries.
It is further averred that the accident was caused by the negligence of the defendant in not providing the stairway with a railing or banister or making provision for sufficent light.
A judgment rejecting plaintiff’s demand comes to us with the following opinion from the trial judge.
“That the plaintiff, while in the employ of the defendant at
In all matters pertinent to the ocurrence, except the fact of the accident and its resulting injury, the testimony of the plaintiff is contradicted by every other witness.
It is shown that the stairs were sufficiently lighted by a large door eight feet high and that the cotton which at times was piled up near around the stairs was so arranged as not to prevent the light from falling upon them. The plaintiff, was not
The basket in which the cotton was carried was not more than two feet wide and eight inches deep, containing from six to eight pounds of cotton and, according to the statement of one of the witnesses, such as “a child ten years old could carry.”
The plaintiff was familiar with all the details of work and with the construction of the stairs; if compelled to move aside to make way for others, she could just as well have moved towards the wall as towards the unprotected side.
In fact, she need not have done either, if her testimony be correct that there was nobody on the steps at the time she fell. One of her co-workers, who witnessed the accident, says:
“I was going up with a basket of pickings and I told Miss Flynn” you ought to wait until I come up, and she told me “to get out of her way.” I said, “I can’t and she raised her basket, and when she got at the third step from the floor she fell on her knee.”
Though the stairs had been used for years they were in good condition, and there had never before been an accident, or even complaint on the part of the numerous employees as to want of light or imperfect construction.
The alleged defect was apparent and the plaintiff assumed the risk; the employer was bound to give only the reasonably safe appliances in accordance with the nature, custom and necessities of the business.
41 An. 500, 44 An. 95, 106. La. 379, 171 U. S. 665.
We agree with the district judge that the accident was caused ’by plaintiff’s carelessness and is not imputable to any negligence on the part of defendant.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.