Norton v. Columbia Street Ry., Light & Power Co.
Norton v. Columbia Street Ry., Light & Power Co.
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the Court was delivered by
This is an action for damages alleged to have been sustained by the plaintiff, Mary E. Norton, through the negligence and wilfulness of the defendant.
*28 The allegations of the complaint material to the questions involved are as follows: “That on or about the 17th day of May, 1906, at about 7 o’clock in the evening, the plaintiff, Mary E. Norton, having been received by the defendant as a passenger on one of its cars going north on Main street, endeavored to alight therefrom, said car being at said time standing still at or near the Transfer station on Main street, at the corner of Gervais street, having stopped at said place for the purpose of taking on and letting off passengers, as these plaintiffs are informed and believe, and while alighting therefrom the defendant negligently, carelessly, wilfully, wantonly and recklessly caused the same to be suddenly and without warning started forward, thereby throwing the plaintiff, Mary E. Norton, violently from said car to and upon the ground.”
The defendant denied the allegations of the complaint, and set up the defense of contributory negligence.
The jury rendered a verdict in favor of the defendant, and the plaintiffs appealed.
The exception can not be sustained for the following reasons:
*29 (1) The charge stated correctly a general proposition of law.
(3) The Circuit Judge was not requested to charge the proposition for which the appellant contends.
(3) At the close of the general charge the presiding Judge said: “Now, Mr. Edmunds, you' can select such proposition as you wish that I have not covered by my general remarksand, although Mr. Edmunds called to his attention several propositions of law, he did not mention the one in question.
These views dispose of the first, second and third exceptions.
It is the judgment of this Court that the judgment of the Circuit Court be affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Norton v. Columbia Street Ry., Light and Power Co.
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. Contributory Negligence. — Is it proper to instruct jury that if defendant plead contributory negligence, he thereby admits his own negligence? 3. Ism. — It is not error to omit to charge that the doctrine of contributory negligence as charged does not apply to a wilful tort where the charge correctly states the general proposition of law, no request to so charge is made in the usual form or after appellant’s attorney is invited to indicate such propositions as he thought the court had omitted. 3. Carrier — -Passenger—Street Railway — Negligence.—It is negligence in a passenger to step off a street car while in motion without notice of intention .to alight when the circumstances are such as to make the danger obvious to a person of ordinary prudence and sense. 4. Ibed. — Ibid.—Ibid.—'When the complaint practically alleges that a passenger attempting to alight from a car while standing still and while so alighting it suddenly and without warning moved, it is not error for the Court to instruct the jury that they must be satisfied of these facts by the preponderance of the evidence before they can find for plaintiff.