Title: Seifried v. Mosher
Citation: 268 P.2d 411
Docket Number: 17224
State: Colorado
Issuer: Colorado Supreme Court
Date: March 1, 1954

268 P.2d 411 (1954) SEIFRIED v. MOSHER et ux. No. 17224. Supreme Court of Colorado, En Banc. March 1, 1954. Rehearing Denied March 29, 1954. *412 Wolvington &amp; Wormwood, Denver, for plaintiff in error. Mabry &amp; Mabry, Trinidad, for defendants in error. MOORE, Justice. We will herein refer to the parties as they appeared in the trial court where defendants in error were plaintiffs and plaintiff in error was defendant. Plaintiffs are husband and wife. The action was instituted to recover damages allegedly sustained by them as the result of an automobile accident in which the car driven by defendant collided with the one in which they were riding. The accident occurred at an intersection of country highways near the town of Swink, Colorado. Plaintiffs alleged that the damages claimed by them were proximately caused by the negligence of defendant in driving his car. Defendant denied that he was negligent, and alleged that plaintiffs were guilty of contributory negligence, and by counterclaim he sought judgment for the amount of damages sustained by him. The issues were submitted to a jury and resulted in verdicts in favor of plaintiffs. The jury awarded to the husband damages in the sum of $290, and the verdict in favor of the wife was for $5,110. Judgments were entered upon the verdicts, and defendant, seeking reversal, brings the cause to this Court by writ of error. Counsel for defendant asks reversal of the judgments on several grounds, including the following: It also is argued that the trial court erred in giving instructions, and in refusing to give one instruction tendered by counsel for defendant. The evidence essential to an understanding of this case is, in substance, as follows: Plaintiffs were driving south on a north-south road and defendant was travelling west as each car approached the intersection where the collision occurred. Each of the roads was surfaced with gravel, and there was little difference as to their condition, or the amount of travel thereon. There was an irrigation ditch running parallel to the east-west road on the north side. It was built in such a way as to be on higher ground than the level of either road, and as plaintiff travelled south, just prior to entering the intersection, it was necessary for him to drive up over the rise caused by the ditch. At the time in question, weeds had grown up along the ditch and obscured the view of vehicle drivers at this intersection. A few feet from the intersection there was a stop sign on the north-south road which required persons travelling south, as plaintiffs were doing, to come to a stop before entering the intersection. There is evidence that plaintiff Oliver Mosher came to a complete stop, looked to his left and could see no westbound traffic; that he listened and could hear nothing; that he put his car into low gear and proceeded to cross the intersection; that when the front of his car was at about the center line of the highway, defendant's car was 40 or 50 feet away travelling between 50 to 60 miles per hour; that it struck plaintiffs' car "dead center"; that defendant could have passed behind plaintiff "as well as hit me"; that defendant had 140 tomato hampers or baskets in his 1941 Chevrolet touring car, that they were in the trunk, the back seat and also stacked up to the roof in the front *413 of the car on the passenger side next to defendant driver; that the right half of defendant's windshield was broken by the baskets being thrown against it; and that plaintiff measured defendant's skid marks back from the point of impact for a distance of 87 feet (the courtesy patrolman testified to "about 15 feet" of such marks). Defendant lived in the vicinity of the intersection, knew the dangerous character of the crossing, and had observed other collisions that had occurred at the same place. Plaintiffs were strangers to the area. On the trial, each of the parties testified that the other made statements and did acts which might be construed as having been said or done from a consciousness of guilt concerning the cause of the accident. All such statements and damaging inferences from conduct were denied by the one to whom they were attributed. The evidence hereinabove mentioned is by no means admitted. On most every material question there is evidence which places in sharp dispute the pertinent facts. From the printed page it might be said that the weight of the evidence was in favor of defendant; however, our court is not the judge of the weight of the evidence or of the credibility of witnesses, and the fact that we might resolve the issues of fact from a consideration of the record alone, in a manner at variance with the findings of the jury, will not justify a reversal, if the verdicts of the jury are supported by competent evidence. The statute governing traffic at rural intersections, Chapter 16, section 210, '35 C.S.A., provides as follows: First: Must we say as a matter of law that, under the evidence considered in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, no completent showing of negligence on the part of defendant was made; or that, assuming negligence of defendant as a matter of law, plaintiff Oliver Mosher was guilty of contributory negligence? This question, in each phase thereof, is answered in the negative. The ultimate fact upon which determination of the controversy depends involves the question as to whether plaintiffs or defendant had the right of way. It is clear that plaintiffs' car entered the intersection before that of defendant. Under the statute hereinabove quoted plaintiffs had a right to proceed unless defendant's car was "approaching so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard". The phrase quoted necessarily imposes due care and caution on the part of the approaching driver under all the facts and circumstances present. Our court in Amos v. Remington Arms Co., 117 Colo. 399, 188 P.2d 896, 898, said, inter alia: "Whether or not either Davis or Amos or both were negligent in violating the traffic laws, and whether said negligence was the proximate cause of this accident, or whether it was caused by the joint and concurrent negligence of both, were questions of fact for the jury to determine. `Negligence is generally for the jury, and always so when the measure of duty is reasonable *414 care.' Higgins v. City of Boulder, 105 Colo. 395, 98 P.2d 996, 997." Defendant's counsel argue that our opinion in Fabling v. Jones, 108 Colo. 144, 114 P.2d 1100, 1103, is controlling in the instant case. In that opinion we said, inter alia: It is contended that this statement is applicable to the conduct of the driver of plaintiffs' car. We cannot, however, say as a matter of law, under the peculiar circumstances of the instant case, that plaintiff Oliver Mosher "looked in such a manner as to fail to see what must have been plainly visible." Instruction No. 10, given by the court, passed to the jury the identical question as to whether the driver of plaintiffs' car looked "in such a manner as to fail to see what must have been plainly visible." By its verdict the jury must have found that defendant's car was not "plainly visible." We think there was sufficient evidence to support that finding. Second: Did the trial court err in giving instructions to the jury, over the objection of defendant's attorney or in refusing to give an instruction tendered by him? This question is answered in the negative. Instruction No. 6, given by the court, is as follows: The objection made to this instruction was that, "it infers that there was evidence of driving at an unlawful rate of speed when there is no such evidence in the case," and that it, "is probably an instruction of `Last clear chance,' and there is no `last clear chance doctrine' in this case." Although the instruction as given is not a model to be followed in cases of this kind, and might be objectionable on grounds other than those stated; when considered in connection with the instructions as a whole we are satisfied that no error was committed in giving it. The specific objections to which the court's attention was directed were not good. "It is provided by Statute of this state that: It is apparent from the briefs on file that the foregoing instruction was taken from the case of Grunsfeld v. Yenter, 100 Colo. 570, 69 P.2d 309. The statute quoted in the instruction in that case, chapter 122, S.L. '31, was repealed in 1935 and was not a statute in force at the time of the accident involved in the instant case. Counsel on both sides, and the trial court, were unaware of the fact that the statute had been repealed and another, of somewhat similar import, had been adopted dealing generally with the same subject matter. *415 Counsel for defendant tendered an instruction in the language of the statute in force at the time of the accident and this instruction the court refused to give. The tendered instruction was as follows: It is apparent that subsection (b) of the tendered instruction is inapplicable to the instant case for the reason that defendant himself admitted that he knew that a "special hazard" existed at the intersection in question, and from all the evidence it is very clear that the provisions of the law, relating to speed where "no special hazard exists," were wholly inapplicable. A comparison of the remaining portions of the tendered instruction, with the one given by the court, will lead to the conclusion that they are substantially the same. Technically it is true that the trial court misinformed the jury by the statement that the instruction actually given was "provided by statute in this state." This technical error is not ground for reversal without some misinformation concerning the substantive law governing the rights and liabilities of the parties under the particular circumstances of the case. We are not concerned with the statement of the court relating to the source of the law. We are concerned only with the question as to whether the court substantially covered the law applicable to the facts. Our attention has not been directed to any particular legal right, duty or liability which might be involved under the tendered instruction, which is not within the coverage of the language employed by the court in the instruction which was given. Counsel for defendant quotes from volume 53, American Jurisprudence, page 433, section 542, as follows: No attempt has been made to show where the instruction given, as applied to the facts of this case, "constitutes a departure in an essential respect from the statute," which was in force at the time of the accident. The trial court in the instruction as given, substantially stated the appliable law, and, when taken into consideration with the instructions as a whole, it could not have prejudiced either of the parties to this cause. The contention of counsel for defendant, that the verdict of *416 the jury awarding damages to Lucy Mosher was excessive, is without merit. The judgment accordingly is affirmed. ALTER and HOLLAND, JJ., dissent. CLARK, J., not participating.