Case Name: Earl H. HINES, Jr. and Beverly Helms Hines v. REMINGTON ARMS COMPANY, INC. and Sinclair, Inc.
Court: Louisiana Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Louisiana
Decision Date: 1994-12-08
Citations: 648 So. 2d 331
Docket Number: No. 94-C-0455
Parties: Earl H. HINES, Jr. and Beverly Helms Hines v. REMINGTON ARMS COMPANY, INC. and Sinclair, Inc.
Judges: WATSON and ORTIQUE, JJ., dissent and assign reasons.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 648
Pages: 331–343

Head Matter:
Earl H. HINES, Jr. and Beverly Helms Hines v. REMINGTON ARMS COMPANY, INC. and Sinclair, Inc.
No. 94-C-0455.
Supreme Court of Louisiana.
Dec. 8, 1994.
Rehearing Denied Jan. 26, 1995.
John B. Scofield, Patrick D. Gallaugher, Scofield, Gerard, Veron, Hoskins & Soileau, for applicant.
J.B. Jones, Jr., Jennifer J. Bercier, Fred Sinclair, Donald Swanson, for respondent.

Opinion:
liHALL, Justice .
In this products liability case, the plaintiff, Earl Hines, Jr., was injured when his bench rest target shooting rifle accidently fired into a container of gunpowder, causing it to ignite. Pursuant to a jury verdict finding that neither the rifle nor the gunpowder involved in the accident were defective, the district court entered judgment in favor of the defendants, Sinclair, Inc., the manufacturer of the rifle, Hodgdon Powder Company, Inc. (Hodg-don), the manufacturer of the gunpowder, and Admiral Insurance Company (Admiral), Hodgdon's liability insurer. The court of appeal reversed and entered judgment in favor of the plaintiffs against the defendants. 630 So.2d 809 (La.App. 3d Cir.1993). Hodg-don and Admiral sought writs of certiorari, which we granted in order to review the correctness of the court of appeal decision. 94-0455, (La. 4/7/94); 635 So.2d 1138. Because we find the court of appeal erred, we reverse the court of appeal judgment against Hodgdon and Admiral and reinstate the judgment of the district court as to them. However, because Sinclair did not seek review of the court of appeal judgment, the judgment against Sinclair is not before us and is final. We therefore reverse, in | apart, the court of appeal judgment.
I.
On February 29, 1984, plaintiff, Earl Hines, Jr., received a custom-manufactured target rifle that he had commissioned from defendant, Sinclair, Inc. The rifle in question was an "accurized" Remington Model 700 bolt-action rifle that had been modified extensively by Fred Sinclair, a gunsmith, and the owner of Sinclair, Inc., in order to be suitable for "bench rest" target shooting. Bench rest target shooting is a highly competitive sport requiring great precision, and as a result, bench rest rifles have an extremely light trigger pull for the purpose of reducing movement of the gun when pulling the trigger. Bench rest rifles are intended to be loaded only when the shooter is at a rifle range, with the gun resting on the bench, pointed down-range.
On the morning of the accident, Mr. Hines picked up his new rifle from a local gun shop, to which Sinclair had it shipped. Upon returning home, Hines went to a room in his home which he had converted into a "reloading room" where his equipment and supplies for modifying and hand loading his cartridges were located, including a reloading bench, several reloading manuals, presses, dies, shells, loaded cartridges, primers, and a large quantity of smokeless gunpowder. Approximately thirty-seven one pound containers of this powder, of various brand names, were stacked along the back of his reloading bench.
When he entered the room, Hines went to his reloading bench and placed the rifle upon the bench with the muzzle pointed at his containers of Hodgdon 4895 gunpowder, a mere six to eight inches away. Hines then loaded a live cartridge into the rifle's eham-ber, and, according to Hines, upon closing the bolt the gun fired, with |3the bullet striking and igniting the Hodgdon powder. A chain-reaction followed that resulted in what the plaintiffs have characterized as an explosion and what the defendants have characterized as a deflagration, or flash fire. As a result of the accident, Hines was severely burned and the resultant stay in the hospital led to further complications, all of which coalesced into permanent and painful personal injuries to Hines. He also suffered extensive property damage to his home as a result of the ensuing fire.
Mr. Hines and his wife, Beverly Helms Hines, timely brought suit for these and other losses against Remington Arms Company, Inc., the manufacturer of the rifle before modification, and Sinclair, Inc., the modifier of the basic Remington rifle, claiming the rifle to be defective. Sinclair, Inc. did not answer the petition and a preliminary default was entered against it. Remington was dismissed on summary judgment. See Hines v. Remington Arms Co., 522 So.2d 152 (La.App. 3d Cir.1988), writ denied, 524 So.2d 522 (La.1988).
The plaintiffs later amended their suit to add the manufacturer of the powder struck by the bullet, Hodgdon, and its liability insurer, Admiral. The amendment adding Hodgdon and Admiral as defendants was filed after the one year prescriptive period and both Hodgdon and Admiral filed peremptory exceptions of liberative prescription, which were not acted upon by the district court. In the amended petition, the plaintiffs alleged that the powder was defective and claimed that Hodgdon had failed to properly warn of the dangers of the powder. In 1989, Hodgdon and Admiral filed a motion for partial summary judgment, which was treated by the trial court as a motion in limine to exclude the presentation of any evidence or testimony before the jury | concerning Hodg-doris alleged failure to warn. The trial court ruled in favor of Hodgdon, prohibiting the presentation of any evidence or remarks in the presence of the jury on the failure to warn claim. Writs to the court of appeal were denied. On the morning of trial, the plaintiffs attempted to set aside this ruling, and again the trial court refused to allow the presentation of evidence on the failure to warn claim, finding that Mr. Hines was a sophisticated user of rifles and gunpowder who had ample knowledge of the dangers of firing a weapon into a container of gunpowder.
After an eight day trial, the jury returned a verdict finding that neither the Sinclair rifle nor the Hodgdon smokeless gunpowder were defective, and judgment was entered in favor of Sinclair, Hodgdon and Admiral accordingly. On appeal, a five judge panel, with two judges dissenting, reversed the district court judgment. 630 So.2d 809 (La. App. 3d Cir.1993).
In reversing, the court of appeal found the class of rifles involved in this accident to be unreasonably dangerous per se and thus found Sinclair to be liable for the plaintiffs' injuries. As to Hodgdon and Admiral, the court of appeal concluded that the trial court erred in excluding all evidence pertaining to the plaintiffs' failure to warn claim and held that evidence concerning Hodgdon's alleged failure to inform consumers of an alternative safer way to store the powder, namely storing the powder in a wooden box, should have been admissible. Upon de novo review of the record, the court of appeal found the warning provided by Hodgdon on its containers of gunpowder to be inadequate, as they made no reference to this alternative safer method of storage, and that such storage method would have prevented the accident. Accordingly, the court of appeal found Hodg-don hable for the plaintiffs' injuries.
The court of appeal then allocated fault as follows: thirty-) gthree percent. to Sinclair, Inc.; thirty-three percent to Hodgdon (and its liability insurer, Admiral, up to its $500,-000 policy limit), and thirty-four percent to Hines. The court then awarded $2,458,-128.92 to Mr. Hines, and $50,000 to Mrs. Hines for her loss of- consortium, both awards subject to reduction for the percentage of fault attributable to Mr. Hines. On the basis that Sinclair, as the manufacturer of the Sinclair rifle, is presumed to know of the vices of the product it sells, the court further awarded attorney fees against Sinclair for an amount equal to twenty-five percent of the award. On rehearing, the court of appeal reduced the award to $2,322,-450.45.
On Hodgdon's and Admiral's writ application, we granted certiorari to consider the correctness of the court of appeal's decision. 94-0455, (La. 4/7/94); 635 So.2d 1138. Sinclair did not apply to this Court for a writ of certiorari. Thus, the only importance of discussing Sinclair's liability is in relation to Hodgdon's and Admiral's plea of prescription. However, since we find no liability on the part of Hodgdon, it is not necessary to consider their plea of prescription or to discuss Sinclair's liability.
II.
The applicable law in this products liability ease is that set out in Halphen v. Johns-Manville Sales Corp., 484 So.2d 110 (La.1986). In order to recover from a manufacturer, the plaintiff must prove that the harm resulted from the condition of the product, that the condition made the product unreasonably dangerous | gto normal use, and that the condition existed at the time the product left the manufacturer's control. Cosse v. Allen-Bradley Co., 601 So.2d 1349 (La.1992); Reilly v. Dynamic Exploration, Inc., 571 So.2d 140, 144 (La.1990); Halphen, 484 So.2d at 113; Bell v. Jet Wheel Blast, 462 So.2d 166, 168 (La.1985). Under Halphen, there are four categories of unreasonably dangerous products: (1) products unreasonably dangerous per se; (2) products constructed with an unintended condition making them more dangerous than they were designed to be; (3) products with any danger inherent in normal use not known or obvious to the user of which the manufacturer has not adequately warned; and (4) products unreasonably dangerous in design. Halphen, 484 So.2d at 114-15.
Whether a product is unreasonably dangerous, and thereby is defective, is a question of fact to be made by the factfinder. Gilboy v. American Tobacco Co., 582 So.2d 1263 (La.1991); Bloxom v. Bloxom, 512 So.2d 839 (La.1987). The jury found that the gunpowder was not defective.
Reversal of the jury's factual finding should only occur where the factfinder is manifestly erroneous or clearly wrong. Where there are conflicts in testimony, the factfinder's reasonable evaluations of credibility and reasonable inferences of fact should not be disturbed upon review, even though the reviewing court may feel its own evaluations and inferences are just as reasonable. However, the reviewing court's function requires more than just a review of the record to find a reasonable factual basis for the finding; it requires a reviewing court to view the record in its entirety to determine whether the jury was clearly wrong. Finally, where two permissible, i.e. reasonable, views of the evidence exist, the factfinder's choice between them cannot be manifestly erroneous. Ambrose v. New Orleans Police Dep't Ambulance Serv., 93-3099, 93-3110, 93-3112 (La. 7/5/94); 639 So.2d 216; Stobart v. State, through DOTD, 617 So.2d 880 (La.1993); Rosell v. ESCO, 549 So.2d 840 (La.1989); Arceneaux v. Domingue, 365 So.2d 1330 (La.19787).
III.
A.
The plaintiffs put on no evidence to establish that the gunpowder involved in this accident was unreasonably dangerous per se, nor that it was unreasonably dangerous in design. The jury was not manifestly erroneous in finding the gunpowder was not defective under either of these two theories.
The plaintiffs did present to the jury evidence and testimony asserting that the gunpowder that was struck by Mr. Hines' bullet was defective in composition and manufacture. The plaintiffs claimed that the gunpowder exploded, and that since smokeless gunpowder, like that involved in this accident, is not supposed to explode, the particular container of gunpowder shot by Mr. Hines was defective. The defendants claimed that there was no true explosion, but rather a deflagration, or flash fire, which is expected when gunpowder is ignited.
The plaintiffs presented the testimony of Alfred Brame, who renovated the house after the fire and viewed the house the night of the fire. He testified that the two windows in the reloading room were blown out and the door to the reloading room was blown into the hallway along with the door jam. The plaintiffs also presented the testimony of Jim Latour, a State Farm adjuster who was accepted as an expert in fire investigation. He examined the house the day after the accident and corroborated Mr. Brame's testimony. He was of the opinion that an explosion took place though he admitted that term was generic to him and he did not know the difference between a deflagration and a detonation. Hines testified that there was an explosion which knocked him off his chair. He admitted, however, that he heard no explosion. Hejgstated that to get out of the room, he had to climb over the reloading room door, which was wedged in the hallway. Mr. Hines' wife, Beverly, testified that at the time of the accident she was at the house next door visiting the neighbors and that she did not hear an explosion, and knew of no one in the neighborhood that heard an explosion. The plaintiffs' expert George Greene, who professed to be an expert in analyzing any situation involving product failure, was accepted as an expert in accident reconstruction, failure analysis, and safety engineering. He testified that there was an explosion and not a deflagration, because a deflagration has no blast and is merely a rapid burning which should not blow out the windows or blow off the door. However, he admitted that there was no detonation, and if there had been one, Mr. Hines would have been killed. He also admitted that he could not give a specific reason why the gunpowder may have exploded.
Dr. Ralph Colpitts, who treated Mr. Hines, testified that Hines suffered purely flash burns, there was no penetration wounds nor anything embedded in his skin, no eardrum damage, and no broken bones. Dr. Colpitts testified that he saw no evidence that Mr. Hines had been involved in an explosion. The defendants also presented the testimony of Robert Hodgdon, the president of Hodg-don Powder Company. He testified that Hodgdon performs extensive tests on several samples from each lot of gunpowder it buys for packaging and resale, and if the lot of gunpowder from which the one pound container involved in this accident had varied in any way from the specifications for the smokeless powder or contained any substance which would cause it to explode or detonate, it would have been detected. He pointed out that there have been no reports of problems with any of the other containers of gunpowder which came from the same lot as the one involved here. He further testified that the Bureau of Explosives for the Department of Transportation conducted tests on Hodgdon's smokeless powder in 1984 by igniting the powder; there were no detonations as a result of these tests, | abut rather, as expected, only big balls of fire. Mr. William Davis testified on behalf of the defendants, and was accepted as an expert in firearms, ammunition, and explosive materials, and has extensive training, education, and experience in this particular field. He testified that gunpowder is extremely flammable, and when ignited is transformed from a solid to a gas, taking up one thousand times as much space as it did before ignition. He confirmed Mr. Hodgdon's testimony that if the powder purchased by Hines, contained some substance that would cause it to explode or detonate it would have been detected in the tests performed by Hodgdon. He testified that a detonation is very loud, consisting of violent shock waves travelling thousands of meters per second and that if a detonation had occurred, Mr. Hines would have been killed. He testified that what occurred here was a deflagration, which is a flame front which burns at inches per second. He further concluded that what happened here was an expected result of the ignition of the powder. The defendants also presented the testimony of Mr. Edward Matunas, a gunsmith, who was accepted as an expert in firearms, ammunition, and reloading. He testified that what happened here is a normal result of igniting gunpowder and there was nothing to suggest the Hodgdon powder was defective.
From the evidence and testimony, it appears that the gunpowder acted as expected under the circumstances. Thus, the jury was not manifestly erroneous in holding the gunpowder was not defective in composition or manufacture.
B.
Finally, the plaintiffs alleged that Hodgdon was responsible for the accident due to its failure to warn of the dangers inherent in gunpowder. As stated earlier, the trial court excluded all evidence on Hodgdon's alleged failure to warn, including Hodgdon's alleged failure to warn of a safer way to store the gunpowder, finding that Hines was a sophisticated user of rifles and gunpowder lipand was well aware of the dangers of firing a weapon into a container of gunpowder, and that therefore, such evidence was irrelevant. The plaintiffs nevertheless made a proffer of evidence in support of their claim. On appeal, the court concluded the trial court had erred in excluding evidence pertaining to the plaintiffs' claim that Hodgdon had failed to inform consumers of an alternative safer way to store the powder that ignited in Mr. Hines' home. Reviewing the evidence, including the proffered evidence, the court found that the warnings, as they existed at the time of the accident, were not communicated with sufficient clarity to instruct Hines of the dangers involved and his corresponding need to exercise more prudent use of the product, and that Hodgdon had a duty to warn or instruct Hines to store the powder in a wooden box. The court then found that Hodgdon's failure to make this alternative safer method of storage known to Hines was a breach of a duty owed to Hines, and that there was a reasonable relationship between this breach and the plaintiffs' injuries. The court of appeal thus found Hodgdon liable for the plaintiffs' injuries. For the reasons that follow, we disagree with the court of appeal's conclusions.
A manufacturer has a duty to provide an adequate warning of any danger inherent in the normal use of its product which is not within the knowledge of or obvious to the ordinary user. Bloxom, 512 So.2d at 843; Halphen, 484 So.2d at 115; Winterrowd v. Travelers Indem. Co., 462 So.2d 639 (La.1985); Hebert v. Brazzel, 403 So.2d 1242 (La.1981); Chappuis v. Sears Roebuck & Co., 358 So.2d 926 (La.1978). This duty does not encompass dangers that are or should be obvious to the ordinary user. See e.g. Hebert, supra; Butler v. Atwood, 420 So.2d 742 (La.App. 4th Cir.1982). This is particularly so when the user is familiar with the product, making him a "sophisticated user." Johnston v. Hartford Ins. Co., 623 So.2d 35, 37 (La.App. 1st Cir.1993); Home Ins. Co. 1National Tea Co., 577 So.2d 65, 74 (La.App. 1st Cir.1990), affirmed in part, reversed in part (on other grounds), 588 So.2d 361 (La.1991); Duncan v. Louisiana Power & Light Co., 532 So.2d 968, 972 (La.App. 5th Cir.1988); Ducote v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 451 So.2d 1211, 1213 (La.App. 4th Cir.1984). A manufacturer's duty to warn generally includes a duty to provide safe use instructions. Sawyer v. Niagara Mach. & Tool Works, Inc., 535 So.2d 1057, 1061 (La.App. 2d Cir.1988); AMCO Underwriters of the Audubon Ins. Co. v. American Radiator & Standard Corp., 329 So.2d 501 (La.App. 1st Cir.1976); Williams v. Allied Chem. Corp., 270 So.2d 157 (La.App. 1st Cir.1972). See also Duncan, supra; Singleton v. Olin Mathieson Chem. Corp., 131 So.2d 329 (La.App. 3d Cir.1961). However, again, the duty does not require such warnings or instructions concerning dangers that are or should be obvious to the ordinary user. See Sawyer, supra; Duncan, supra; Foster v. Marshall, 341 So.2d 1354 (La.App. 2d Cir.1977); Singleton, supra.
The plaintiffs' first claim is that Hodgdon had a duty to warn of the inherent danger of the gunpowder. We reject the plaintiffs' claim in this regard. It is clear that the dangers of gunpowder, and of pointing a loaded high powered rifle at gunpowder, are well known and obvious to the ordinary consumer, especially one such as Hines, who is a sophisticated user of rifles and gunpowder. Although stating he was not certain exactly what would happen if a bullet was fired into a container of gunpowder, Hines admitted he was well aware of the dangerousness of such conduct. Hodgdon, as a matter of law, had no duty to warn against such action. Further, the label on the gunpowder container, provided ample warning of the flammability and danger of the product.
We now turn to the plaintiffs' other failure to warn claim — that Hodgdon should have warned Hines of a safer way to store the powder, i.e. a wooden box. The plaintiffs' contention emanates from a section contained in a Hodgdon manual which suggests storage li2of gunpowder in a wooden box, known as a powder magazine. The plaintiffs' expert, George Green, testified that storage in such a box is safer, and probably would have prevented the deflagration or explosion which took place when Hines' gun fired into the container of Hodgdon powder. No mention of this particular storage method was made on the warning label attached to the container of Hodgdon powder struck by Mr. Hines' bullet.
The question we must answer is how far does Hodgdon's duty to warn or instruct extend. We conclude that Hodgdon's warnings were written with sufficient clarity to instruct Hines on the dangers of the gunpowder and the need to exercise prudence in using and storing the powder, and that Hodgdon's duty to warn did not extend to advising or instructing Hines of particular storage methods for the powder.
The danger presented by gunpowder is its high degree of flammability, the very essence of its usefulness. This danger is obvious, particularly to a sophisticated user like Mr. Hines. It naturally follows that any such user is aware of the need to protect the powder from external heat, flames, sparks, etc.... It stands to reason that such user would know that any barrier, such as wood, would provide additional protection and make storage of the powder safer from such hazards. Because of such user's knowledge, and simple common sense, it is not necessary that a gunpowder manufacturer, after warning of the highly flammable nature of the product, further warn or advise of particular methods of storage.
Further, the label on the container of Hodgdon gunpowder that was struck by Hines' bullet contained warnings on the front and back of the can. On the front of the container, next to a big red flame was the following:
I, «DANGER
EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE
PRECAUTION ON BACK OF CAN
On the back of the can was the following warnings:
DANGER!
SMOKELESS PROPELLANT
EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE
Keep away from heat, open flame, and sparks. Store in Cool, Dry Place.
Keep Out of the Reach of Children.
CAUTION
Use this smokeless powder propellant only for loading ammunition in strict accordance with HODGDON POWDER COMPANY loading data for this powder.
Every precaution should be taken for safe handling of these explosive powders. Inspect each container closely semi-annually.... Use this powder only according to our loading instructions. Loading data for any caliber or gauge is available for 25$ and a self-addressed envelope, or our complete loading data manual is available from the dealer selling our powder or from HODGDON POWDER COMPANY.
The warning provided by Hodgdon on its containers included extensive warnings about the flammability and danger of the powder. Thus, consumers were warned of the danger inherent in the product. Further, Hodgdon provided on the container, precautionary warnings of those things that pose a danger to the gunpowder — "Keep away from heat, open flames and sparks." It warned that "[ejvery precaution should be taken for safe handling of these explosive powders." It also instructed users to "Store in a cool dry place," and to "Keep out of the reach of children." It simply is not necessary to further warn or advise as to particular methods of storage. There are numerous ways these precautions might have been taken, e.g. storing the powder in a closet, storing it in a cabinet, or storing it in a wooden box. Anyone would know that such additional protection would make storage safer, and the fact that Hodgdon provided in its manual a particular way to carry out the precautions warned about on the container, does not create a duty on their part to have put this on the label. Certainly, under |i4the peculiar circumstances of this case, there is no need to warn or advise of a method of storage that would protect against discharge of a firearm from short range into the container.
In our view, the warnings and instructions provided by Hodgdon adequately apprised Hines of the dangers of gunpowder and the precautions that should be taken in relation to its use and storage, and Hodgdon's duty to warn does not extend to warning or advising users of particular storage methods for the powder. Therefore, the jury verdict was correct and the trial court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to allow the plaintiffs to present evidence to the jury on their failure to warn claim, and the court of appeal erred in reversing that judgment.
IV.
Because the gunpowder involved in this accident was not defective under any of the four available theories, the court of appeal judgment against Hodgdon and Admiral is reversed. Sinclair did not appeal the court of appeal judgment against it, and thus, that judgment is final. In view of our finding on the merits of the plaintiffs' claims against Hodgdon, it is not necessary to consider Sinclair's liability as it bears on Hodgdon's and Admiral's plea of prescription.
The judgment of the court of appeal against Hodgdon and Admiral is reversed and the plaintiffs' demands against those defendants rejected. Because the judgment against Sinclair is not before us, it stands.
REVERSED, IN PART.
WATSON and ORTIQUE, JJ., dissent and assign reasons.
LEMMON, J., joins in the opinion and assigns additional reasons.
Justice Revius O. Ortique, Jr., retired, participating in the decision by assignment, the case having been argued prior to his retirement.
Judge Melvin A. Shortess, Court of Appeal, First Circuit, sitting by assignment in place of Justice James L. Dennis, not on panel. Rule IV, Part 2, § 3.
. The evidence clearly preponderates that the bullet fired by Hines, struck a container of Hodg-don powder. Hines testified that he kept all his Hodgdon powder on one side of .his reloading bench, and other types of powder were kept on the other side of the bench. He testified that the rifle was pointed at the same side of the bench as the Hodgdon powder. The defendants did not mount any serious challenge to this version of events.
. The court of appeal eliminated the amounts awarded to the plaintiffs for property damage, since they had already been reimbursed by their insurers, State Farm Insurance Co., Inc., and the claim had been subrogated to State Farm. Since State Farm, who had intervened in the suit, elected not to appeal the judgment of the district court, that judgment was final as to State Farm, and the plaintiffs had no right to recover property damages after they had been assigned to State Farm.
. Mr. Hines' accident occurred in 1984, well before the Louisiana Products Liability Act became effective on September 1, 1988. 1988 La. Acts, No. 64 (presently found at La.R.S. 9:2800.51 et seq.). The Act affects substantive rights and has accordingly been held not to apply retroactively. Gilboy v. American Tobacco Co., 582 So.2d 1263, 1265 (La.1991).
. The tricil court judge, in excluding the failure to warn evidence, found Hines to be a sophisticated user of rifles and of gunpowder, and the plaintiffs have not challenged this. We agree with the trial court's determination,