Case Name: Louise E. Donnaly et al., Respondents, v. Union Steam Laundry, Appellant
Court: Washington Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Washington
Decision Date: 1923-12-06
Citations: 127 Wash. 260
Docket Number: No. 18226
Parties: Louise E. Donnaly et al., Respondents, v. Union Steam Laundry, Appellant.
Judges: MaiN, C. J., Bridges, Fullerton, and Pemberton, JJ., concur.
Reporter: Washington Reports
Volume: 127
Pages: 260–261

Head Matter:
[No. 18226.
Department Two.
December 6, 1923.]
Louise E. Donnaly et al., Respondents, v. Union Steam Laundry, Appellant.
Damages (80) — Personal Injuries — Excessive Verdict. A verdict for $3,000 for personal injuries, sustained by a woman 24 years of age, in good health and free from disfigurement, is not excessive, where she was painfully hurt, rendered unconscious, confined to the hospital for ten days, her lower lip was torn from the jaw, causing perceptible disfigurement, and she received permanent scars near the eye and on her chin, and other injuries.
Appeal from a judgment of the superior court for Pierce county, Askren, J., entered April 2, 1923, upon the verdict of a jury rendered in favor of the plaintiffs, in an action for personal injuries.
Affirmed.
J. L. Snapp and Murphy & Kumm, for appellant.
J. Chas. Dennis, for respondents.
Reported in 220 Pac. 788.

Opinion:
Mitchell, J.
This is a personal injury case. The judgment entered on the verdict of the jury is for $3,000, and the sole question presented on the appeal is that the amount is excessive. Mrs. Donnaly was twenty-four years of age at the time she was injured, and prior thereto was in good health and free from disfigurements. She was painfully hurt and rendered unconscious for a while by an accident, and was confined to the hospital for about ten days. She received several minor injuries that have entirely disappeared. A cut near the eye has left a noticeable scar which quite likely will never disappear. She received a deeper cut near the elbow that has left a scar. This injury, if not permanent, will cause trouble in her arm and shoulder for considerable time, according to her testimony and that of her physicians. Probably the most serious injury she received was in having her lower lip torn away from the jaw, leaving her lip, after it healed, thicker than it was before and drawn to one side so as to cause a permanent and perceptible disfigurement of the face. In the treatment of this injury it became necessary to lance from the outside and drain an abscess that formed in the region of the wound, which resulted in a permanent scar on her chin.
In view of these facts, we discover no evidence of passion or prejudice on the part of the jury, nor occasion to successfully urge that the trial court should have granted a new trial because of the claim that the verdict is excessive.
Judgment affirmed.
MaiN, C. J., Bridges, Fullerton, and Pemberton, JJ., concur.