West v. Gillette
West v. Gillette
Opinion of the Court
On trial of the case motions by the defendant, made at the close of the plaintiff’s evidence and at the close of all of the evidence, to in
The record discloses that there was considerable conflict in the evidence with reference to the controlling facts which were put in issue by the pleadings, viz., the location of the horse and carriage at the time of the injury, the conduct of decedent, the question of his negligence, the rate of speed at which the horse was being driven by him, the manner in which the car of the defendant was being operated, and the rate of speed at which it was going.
There was very substantial evidence in support of the claims of the contending parties as to these matters, and the determination of the issues of fact was entirely for the jury under proper instructions of the court.
The chief reliance of the plaintiff in error is upon the contention that the court erred in its charge to the jury, and that the error was accentuated by the action of the court upon a request made for further, instructions. The record shows that after the jury had retired and had been in deliberation for some three hours, they returned into court and asked for further instructions, and that the court said to them:
“I will read it to you, gentlemen, having it in pencil (form before me, that part of the charge which has been requested by your foreman:
*309 “ Tn other words, gentlemen of the jury, the decedent, Albert N. Gillette, may have been guilty of negligence in driving upon this track as he did, yet such negligence will not defeat the right of the plaintiff to recover, if the motorman saw the danger in which he was placed in time to have avoided colliding with him by the exercise of reasonable care and by the use of all the means at his command, and negligently failed to exercise such reasonable care. That is, if you find that there was negligence upon the part of the railway company, and negligence upon the part of Gillette, in driving upon this track in front of an approaching car, then you will proceed and examine the conduct of the motorman after he had discovered, or, by the exercise of ordinary care, ought to have discovered, the danger in which the said Albert N. Gillette was at the time. As we have said, it was the duty of the motorman to have his car under control; that is, the car must be in the power of the motorman to such an extent as that when he saw this horse and buggy on the track, or when, by ordinary care in his duty of looking for vehicles, he ought to have seen this horse and buggy on the track, he could stop his car within a reasonable time and distance so as to avoid, if possible, the collision.’ ”
The petition contained the following: “That when the said decedent started across the track of the defendant’s railway, the motorman in charge of said car could see the decedent starting across or upon the track with his said horse and buggy more than three hundred feet away, and that said motorman knew that at the speed he was running
In Railroad Co. v. Kassen, 49 Ohio St., 230, it is held:
“It is a well settled rule of the law of negligence, that the plaintiff may recover, notwithstanding his own negligence exposed him to the risk of the injury of which he complains, if the defendant, after he became aware, or ought to have become aware, of the plaintiff’s danger, failed to use ordinary care to avoid injuring him, and he was thereby injured.
“The rule, that the negligence of the injured party, which proximately contributes to the injury, precludes him from recovering, has no application where the more proximate cause of the injury is the omission of the other party, after becoming aware of the danger to which the former party is exposed, to use a proper degree of care to avoid injuring him.”
The case just referred to was reviewed in Drown v. The Northern Ohio Traction Co., 76 Ohio St., 234. In the second proposition of the syllabus it is held: “The doctrine of ‘last chance,’ as formulated in Railroad Co. v. Kassen, 49 Ohio St., 230, para
It seems to be now generally agreed that this doctrine of “last chance” is a humane modification of the strict and rigid rule which denies to a plaintiff under all circumstances any recovery for the negligence of a defendant, where the plaintiff has himself contributed to the injury by his own negligence. The application of this rigid rule was in many cases found to work injustice, for it would surely be unjust to hold that one should be denied the protection of the law because of acts of carelessness on his part, which were followed by subsequent acts of negligence on the part of another, which latter acts were the proximate cause of injury. It would, in effect, be holding that where, for example, one goes upon a railway track without exercising proper precautions as to danger, the railway company would be relieved, thereafter, of the duty to exercise ordinary care for his safety. Where one knows of another’s negligence and the circumstances are such that the former has control of the situation, this knowledge and control impose on him as to his subsequent acts an affirmative duty to use ordinary care to avoid injury.
The court, in the opinion, at page 196, say: “But, assuming that Brandon was guilty of some riegligence in driving on the track, yet if the motorman, in the exercise of even ordinary care, after he saw thé horse and appreciated Brandon’s peril, had time and opportunity to avoid the possible consequences by checking the car, and neglected to so exercise such care, such neglect would be negligence and might properly be regarded as the proximate cause of the injury.”
However, in view of the situation disclosed by the undisputed facts in this case, the objection made to the charge is wholly immaterial.
It is shown by the motorman’s own testimony that he saw the horse and buggy, and actually had it in constant view from the time his car reached the top of a hill, several hundred feet away from where the buggy was, until he struck it. There is
In 2 Thompson on Negligence (2 ed.), Section 1629, the rule is stated as follows: “Although a person comes upon the track negligently, yet if the servants of the railway company, after they see his danger, can avoid injuring him, they are bound to do so. And, according to the bettér view with reference to injuries to travelers at highway crossings, — as distinguished from injuries to trespassers and bare licensees upon railway tracks at places where they have no legal right to be, — the servants
In Railroad Co. v. Kassen, supra, the material facts were: The company was running two trains in the same direction about two hours apart. Kassen fell from the rear platform of the forward train to the track, sustaining injuries which disabled him from leaving his position of danger on the track; and while in that condition he was killed by the following train. The employes of the company operating the forward train knew that he had fallen and was in a place of danger. Judgment against the company was affirmed in that case, and in the syllabus the rule of law is stated, viz.: “It is a well settled rule of the law of negligence, that the plaintiff may recover, notwithstanding his own negligence exposed him to the risk of the injury of which he complains, if the defendant, after he became aware, or ought to have become aware, of the plaintiff’s danger, failed to use ordinary care to avoid injuring him, and he was thereby injured.”
That case is distinguished from The Erie Rd. Co. et al. v. McCormick, Admx., 69 Ohio St., 45. McCormick had, for a number of years, been a trackwalker on a portion of the road of the defendant company, which included a bridge. He was struck by one of the company’s trains while on the
The facts in that case and the relation of the parties to each other were entirely different from the facts and relation in the case we have here. McCormick was not at a public crossing, or at any other place where the public had a right to be, and
We think the rule stated in Thompson on Negligence, which we have hereinbefore quoted, is well founded in reason and authority, and in view of the undisputed facts shown in this record it is wholly unnecessary to review the large number of cases touching the question. They could be of no assistance for the purposes of this case. Even if it be conceded that the trial court erred in including in its charge the words, “or, by the exercise of ordinary care, ought to have discovered,” as claimed by the plaintiff in error, .the error could not prejudice the defendant’s rights under the circumr stances alluded to.
There was the usual variance in the details given by the different witnesses and there was testimony directly supporting the contentions of each of the parties. But as to the actual view and knowledge of the motorman of the entire situation there is no dispute.- Mr. Stickney, a witness for the plaintiff, testified that he was a passenger on the car at the time; that the car was running about twenty miles an hour, and that there was no change in the speed of the car after it left the top of the hill until it struck the buggy. He testified that when the “sharp, shrill whistle” was sounded he got up and
The testimony of the motorman shows that he had actual view and knowledge of the entire physical situation from the time he started down, the hill referred to; that just as the car started over the hill he noticed the buggy; and that he “started blowing the whistle and applied a little air.” To quote his exact words: “I commenced blowing the whistle again, and it seemed like the horse was going to stop, so I released my air again.” These steps were repeated until the collision.
As above stated, other witnesses testified to other details. It was the function of the jury to determine the ultimate facts from the evidence and to determine whether or not the motorman had, in full view of the entire situation, relied entirely on his whistle; whether or not he had failed to perform his duty to maintain proper control of the car, in. order to be able to stop it if necessary to avoid injury; and whether or not he used ordinary vigilance to stop or check the car under the circumstances shown by the evidence.
With reference to Gillette, it is not shown whether or not he looked from behind the curtain which was on his buggy. As was said in the Brandon case, supra, at page 195: “It is possible he did look and, mistaking the speed of the car, thought he could safely cross, thus attempting to exercise an undoubted right in a public street. If he did it would be a question for the jury whether a man of ordinary prudence, situated as he was then situated, would have done as he did, * * *
For the reasons given, we think it clear that there is no error shown in this record prejudicial to the defendant in the trial court, and the judgment will be affirmed.
Judgment affirmed.
Dissenting Opinion
dissenting. The accident occurred in the outskirts of the city of Delaware. The interurban car was proceeding along Sandusky street in a sparsely populated suburb of that city, and the collision of the car with the buggy in which the decedent was driving occurred at the crossing of that street with Olentangy avenue, a thoroughfare approaching Sandusky street at right angles. There is a conflict in the testimony as to whether the motorman sounded his signal, and as to the rate
Under this state of facts the court charged the jury: “If .you find, therefore, that there was negligence upon the part of the railroad company, and negligence upon the part of Albert N. Gillette in driving upon this track in front of an approáching car, if he did, then you will proceed and examine the conduct of the motorman, after he had discovered, or, by the exercise of ordinary care, ought to have discovered, the danger in which Albert N. Gillette was at the time. As we have said, it was the duty of the motorman to have his car under control; that is, this car must be in the power of the motorman to such an extent as that when he saw this horse and buggy on the track, or when, by ordinary care in his duty for looking for vehicles, he ought to- have seen this buggy on the
That this portion of the charge was effective in producing the verdict is self-evident. The record discloses that the jury returned for further instructions upon this point, and that the foreman asked the court “to read that part of the charge referring to a similar case where negligence may be found on both sides.” The court thereupon read to the jury the charge quoted, whereupon the foreman answered, “I guess that is sufficient, as far as I am concerned.”
The record therefore discloses, since the verdict of the jury was evidently based upon this particular instruction, that the same, if erroneous, was highly prejudicial. That the charge so given is erroneous, under the facts stated, is evident not only from the decisions of our own court, but from the pronouncement of other jurisdictions which have refused to approve a similar charge under the facts disclosed. Why the triql court gave this instruction in its general charge, and emphasized it by repetition, is beyond comprehension, since it not only failed to follow the express rule of this court upon the subject but refused to submit to the jury special re-' quest No. 8, asked by decedent’s counsel on the trial, which, if justified by the facts offered, would have been less objectionable. That instruction was as follows:
“The court instructs you that even if you' should find that the decedent, Gillette, was guilty of some negligence in driving on the track in front of the*321 approaching car, yet, if the motorman in charge of the car, in the exercise of even ordinary care, after he saw the horse and buggy, and appreciated Gillette’s peril, had time and opportunity to avoid the possible consequences by stopping the car, and neglected to exercise such care, such neglect would be negligence and might properly be regarded as the proximate cause of the injury.
If it be conceded that the petition makes a case of “the last clear chance,” and in our view it does not, the general charge permits recovery by the plaintiff in case the jury found that both the motorman and the decedent were negligent in their manner of approaching the crossing. The italics used in this case are our own, and are used to show wherein the trial court committed error. The legal doctrine of the last clear chance, or “newly discovered peril,” can only be applied to those cases where the facts warrant. It is never applied where the negligence of both defendant and plaintiff is concurrent and so coincident in point of time as to be the proximate cause of the injury.
The principle is a humanitarian one, developed in the evolution of our modern jurisprudence, and in some instances extends to an injured person the right to reparation even though he himself is negligent. But where the negligence of both combine proximately to produce the injury there can be no recovery by either. The development of the principle now favors an injured person, though he has negligently placed himself in a perilous situation, where the defendant has discovered and ap
It is incomprehensible why the syllabus in this case has not attempted to overrule or distinguish these two cases and to clarify the “last chance” rule - for the benefit of the bench and bar of this state. The opinion seems to rely for authority on the cases of Railroad Co. v. Kassen, 49 Ohio St., 230, and The Steubenville & Wheeling Traction Co. v. Brandon, Admr., 87 Ohio St., 187. The Kassen case was distinguished by this court in the case of Erie Railroad Co. v. McCormick, supra, where the court say on page 53: “The concrete rule upon the subject is, that if one is upon the track of a railway
By its instruction in the case at bar the court took upon itself to say to the jury that notwith-' standing the peculiar facts presented, the plaintiff could recover even if his negligence was concurrent and of the same character as that of the defendant. Instructions applied to facts similar to this case and using substantially the same language have generally been held to be erroneous, as will be found in some of the following cases, which discuss at length the principle involved: Thompson v. Los Angeles & S. D. Ry. Co., 165 Cal., 748; Evansville Rys. Co. v. Miller, 111 N. E. Rep., 1031; Himmelwright v. Baker, 82 Kans., 569; Indianapolis Trac. & Term. Co. v. Croly, 54 Ind. App., 566; International & G. N. Ry. Co. v. Ploeger et al., 96 S. W. Rep., 56, and Dyerson v. Union Pac. Rd. Co., 74 Kans., 528. It is true that cases are found that authorize a recovery, where the plaintiff has been negligent, if the defendant ought to have had opportunity for discovering his peril. It is evident
By the charge in this case, however, the doctrine of contributory negligence, long recognized in this state, has been emasculated, since the charge permits recovery by a negligent person even though that negligence concurred in and was a proximate cause of the injury. It was accordingly at variance with the decision in the case of Drown v. The Northern Ohio Traction Co., supra.
The fallacy in applying the charge to cases of this character is clear. Let it be assumed that two motor vehicles are approaching a crossing over thoroughfares meeting one another at right angles, and that in their approach each driver is negligent in not seeing the other. Would any principle of law uphold the right of either or both of the parties to invoke the rule of the last clear chance ? It is evi
The doctrine of the last clear chance is the development of the rule announced in Davies v. Mann, 10 M. & W., 546. In that case the plaintiff had fettered his ass and turned him upon the highway to graze. It appears that there was no plea of imputed negligence; but a careful inspection of. the case fails to reveal but that the defendant may have had actual knowledge of the presence of the ass upon the highway. The court there held that unless it was shown that the donkey’s presence was the immediate cause of the injury plaintiff’s negligence was no defense, and that, if the proximate' cause of the injury was the fault of the defendant’s servant in driving too fast, the mere fact of a prior placing of a fettered ass upon the road would not defeat recovery. It is evident in that case, irre-. spective of the question of the defendant’s actual knowledge, that the decision was based on the fact that the plaintiff’s negligence was not an immediate factor producing the injury but was a remote and
This principle found early lodgment in this state in the case of Kerwhaker v. The Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Rd. Co., 3 Ohio St., 173, where it was held that “When the negligence of the defendant on a-suit upon such ground of action, is the proximate cause of the injury, but that of the plaintiff only remote, consisting of some act or omission not occurring at the time of the injury, the action is maintainable.” (Italics ours.)
This rule is recognized in practically every jurisdiction; and the case of Drown v. The Northern Ohio Traction Co., supra, is simply an elaboration of that principle. In the case at bar the motorman might .well have assumed that the traveler ap
The concrete rule upon the subject is found in 29 Cyc., 530, where it is stated that a person guilty of negligence in exposing himself to danger may still recover, if the defendant, after knowing of such danger, could have avoided the injury by the exercise of ordinary care. But it is stated that “This rule has no application where the negligence of the person injured and of defendant are concurrent, each of which at the very time when the accident occurs contributes to it.” See also 33 Cyc., 854.
The first proposition of the syllabus in the instant case, as an abstract proposition of law, is without criticism, for the element of decedent’s negligence is lacking, and it therefore cannot be applied to the charge in this case where such negligence may be found by the jury. The latter part of the second proposition is not apropos, either to the case made or to the charge given, for two vital reasons. It fails to require the element of appreciation of the decedent’s peril after seeing him “a considerable distance from the crossing.” Furthermore, what is meant by the expression, the decedent may.have been originally negligent? Does it imply a cessa
In the present case the motornjan testified he first discovered the horse when it was fifty feet from the track. If the court had confined his charge to the motorman’s duty after he saw the horse and appreciated the decedent’s peril, the charge might have been consistent with the McCormick case, if concurring negligence were absent. But driving along Olentangy avenue as decedent did, the language employed by the court — to the effect that the jury should have examined “the conduct of the motorman after he had discovered, or, by the exercise of ordinary care, ought to have discovered,” the decedent’s danger — could only apply to the motorman’s conduct in not earlier discovering the impending peril at any point along Olentangy avenue, and thus impose the duty of ordinary care upon the motorman in case he should have earlier discovered the decedent’s perilous situation. The charge could have been understood in no other sense. In other words, the same duty of ordinary care that was required after actual discovery was imposed upon the motorman in case he “ought to have discovered” the peril.
It is difficult to see how the trial court could have gone astray in this case, especially in view of the adjudicated cases reported by this court. It may be said that the several circuit courts of this state have not been in doubt as to the proper rule to apply in cases of this character since the decision of The Erie Railroad Co. et al. v. McCormick, Admx., supra, distinguishing the Kassen case. The
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.