Mills v. Garlitz
Mills v. Garlitz
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
As a result of a collision between two automobiles at a right angle intersection in the City of Pittsburgh on the early morning of December 7, 1957, the two actions of trespass from which these appeals arose were filed by Harry Mills, driver of one of the cars, and by Samuel Whitmore, a passenger in the same car. The actions were brought against Kurt Roberts, a minor, who was .the driver of the other car. In the Whitmore
The streets forming this intersection were Fulton Street and Western Avenue, the latter being designated a through street with stop signs in place commanding traffic on Fulton Street to stop before entering it. Mills was driving south on Fulton Street and was confronted by the stop sign. Roberts was traveling east on Western Avenue. The accident occurred in the intersection in the eastbound lane for Western Avenue, by the right front of the Roberts’ car striking the right rear fender of the Mills’ car. The jury returned a verdict in favor of Whitmore and against both Mills and Roberts for $600.00. In the Mills’ case the verdict was for the defendant, Roberts. Whitmore and Mills as plaintiff, each filed a motion for a new trial and both motions were refused by the lower court. These appeals followed.
The only question in the Whitmore appeal is the adequacy of his verdict. The only question in the Mills’ case is the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the verdict for the defendant, Roberts.
Considering first the Whitmore appeal, we note that his injuries were described by Dr. Grunnagle, who saw him on the morning of the accident after he had been admitted to the Allegheny General Hospital, as follows: “He was in bed at the time ... he showed nothing of a particular note on physical examination except that he had a laceration of the scalp; he had a history of having been unconscious following the accident; and he had some abrasions on his legs. So, a diagnosis was made of cerebral concussion, abrasion of the legs, and laceration of the scalp . . . He was conscious . . . I don’t recall [any pain] ... he was kept quiet and then ambulated gradually and, of course, his incision had been sutured, his wound had been sutured and the sutures were removed and he was discharged on the
At the trial Whitmore testified that he had two teeth knocked out, roots and all, and one broken off in the accident. He offered proof by a dentist, Dr. Primas, that as a result thereof he needed dental work, including dentures, at a cost of $530.00. However, in view of the fact that he did not consult the dentist until October 10, 1959, almost two years after the accident, when an examination made by the dentist indicated an extremely poor condition in his mouth about which no complaint had previously been made to anyone, it is very reasonable to assume that the jury disbelieved that the accident had anything to do with the condition of his mouth and teeth. Likewise, with his claim for lost wages from being out of work for four weeks after the accident, the jury might well have disbelieved him when he said he was unable to work and had to walk with the aid of a cane for that period, after he had produced testimony from Dr. Grunnagle, his, own Avitness, that after being given bedrest for three days in the hospital he had been discharged in good condition.
Therefore, limiting the results of the accident to those described by Dr. Grunnagle, with a $15.00 doctor bill and an $84.00 hospital bill, an award of $600.00 does not shock our conscience.
Insofar as the appeal of Mills is concerned, we find no merit in it. In MacDougall v. Chalmers, 192 Pa. Superior Ct. 401, 404, 162 A. 2d 51, 53, this Court recently said: “Appellee was required to grant to appellant the right of way and before entering into the through street to stop, not only at the stop sign, but at the intersection itself. . . . From that point he was required to look in both directions to satisfy himself
The judgments are affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.