Rawlins v. Currington
Rawlins v. Currington
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff appeals from a judgment against her pursuant to jury verdict in an intersection collision case. We affirm.
On appeal plaintiff challenges only the defendant’s verdict-directing instruction on contributory negligence. That instruction hypothesized, disjunctively, plaintiff’s negligence in (1) failing to keep a careful lookout, (2) driving at excessive speed, (3) failure to yield the right-of-way. The specific attack is that submissions (1) and (3) were not supported by the evidence.
The accident occurred at the intersection of Walnut and Fifth Streets in Des-loge, Missouri. Plaintiff was driving south on Fifth Street; defendant east on Walnut. The intersection contained no traffic control. Plaintiff describes it as “blind” due to
Plaintiff points to the evidence of defendant’s witnesses that plaintiff entered the intersection first to support her claim that the right-of-way hypothesis was defective for lack of evidence. Sec. 304.351.2 RSMo 1978 provides that:
“When two vehicles enter an intersection from different highways at approximately the same time, the driver of the vehicle on the left [plaintiff] shall yield the right-of-way to the driver of the vehicle on the right [defendant].”
The paragraph preceding that one provides that a vehicle approaching an intersection such as this one shall yield to a vehicle already in the intersection. Plaintiff contends that by reaching the intersection first she was therefore entitled to the right-of-way. Our courts have consistently recognized that right-of-way is not governed by a mere split-second priority in entering an intersection first. James v. Berry, 301 S.W.2d 530 (Mo.App. 1957) [2, 3]; Douglas v. Whitledge, 302 S.W.2d 294 (Mo.App. 1957) [4]. Defendant was 20 feet from the intersection traveling 45 feet per second when plaintiff was 20 feet from the intersection traveling between 30 and 75 feet per second. They obviously entered the intersection within a split-second of each other. Under those circumstances it was a question for the jury whether the parties entered the intersection at “approximately the same time” which would impose upon plaintiff the obligation to yield. The right-of-way hypothesis was supported by the evidence.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.