Teater v. City of Seattle
Teater v. City of Seattle
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered by
This was an action for damages for the loss of two horses and injury to a harness and buggy. The plaintiff was the owner of the property, and let the same to one Gewis. While Gewis was driving the horses took fright, became unmanageable and ran away. They ran upon a certain bridge, known as the Grant street bridge, which is constructed as a public driveway within the city limits, over the tide flats, about sixteen feet above the ground, and is a continuation or extension of Eighth street on the north. The horses, undertaking to make a turn on said bridge, ran off the outer side. One of them was killed by the fall and the other so severely injured that it had to be shot. The buggy and harness were damaged. At the point where the injury occurred there was no railing upon the bridge, and the want of a railing is substantially the basis for the plaintiff’s action, it being claimed that the city was negligent in so constructing the bridge. After the testimony upon the part' of plaintiff had been concluded, the court granted a motion for a non-suit, from which this appeal was taken.
It appears by the testimony that the team became unmanageable and ran a mile before the accident occurred, and were on a full run when they went over, and that they were under such headway that they could not make the turn. It further fairly appears by the plaintiff’s case, that the bridge, at the point in question, was in a reasonably safe condition, and that the accident was due to the fact that the horses
Affirmed.
Dunbar, C. J., and Hoyt, and Stiles, JJ., concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- M. M. Teater v. The City of Seattle
- Cited By
- 15 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS — LIABILITY FOR DEFECT IN BRIDGE— PROXIMATE CAUSE. The fact that a runaway team of horses while under full headway, dashes over the side of a bridge at a point where the city has provided no guard rail, does not render the city liable for the injury, if the bridge was in a reasonably safe condition, and the fright of the horses had not been caused by any negligence chargeable to the city. A city is not the insurer of the safety of its streets, but is only required to keep them in a safe condition for ordinary travel.