Title: Smith v. Marquette Casualty Company
Citation: 176 So. 2d 133, 247 La. 1054
Docket Number: N/A
State: Louisiana
Issuer: Louisiana Supreme Court
Date: June 7, 1965

176 So. 2d 133 (1965) 247 La. 1054 William A. SMITH v. MARQUETTE CASUALTY COMPANY. No. 47601. Supreme Court of Louisiana. June 7, 1965. John P. Navarre, Oakdale, for respondent. HAMLIN, Justice: In the exercise of our supervisory jurisdiction (Art. VII, Sec. 11, La.Const. of 1921), we directed certiorari to the Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, in order that we might review its judgment which awarded plaintiff damages in the sum of $3,713.25 and reversed a judgment of the trial court which had dismissed plaintiff's action at his costs. 169 So. 2d 750, 247 La. 364, 171 So. 2d 479. No argument was made nor briefs filed in this Court; the matter was submitted on the record as compiled in the Court of Appeal and on the arguments presented in application for certiorari. *134 On October 10, 1962, plaintiff, William A. Smith,[1] a guest passenger in a 1962 Austin-Healy Convertible automobile owned and operated by Daniel Goings, was injured when an accident occurred. The present direct action ensued against Marquette Casualty Company, the liability insurer of Goings. "* * * The trial court found that Goings' speed was excessive; that it was at a rate of 65 to 70 miles per hour. Nevertheless, it found that the excessive speed was not a proximate cause of the accident; it concluded that the sole proximate cause of the accident was the negligence of the driver of the unidentified truck which ran Goings' automobile off the road. The Court of Appeal found that there was ample evidence to support the trial court's finding of Goings' speed at 65 to 70 miles per hour, and that in view of the 60 mile per hour speed limit Goings' speed was excessive. It stated, "We do not believe Goings would have lost control of his sports car had he not been driving at an excessive rate of speed. Thus we find Goings was negligent and that his negligence so contributed to the accident that it constituted a proximate cause of plaintiff's injuries." The Court of Appeal likewise found that plaintiff was not contributorily negligent in not warning Goings to slow down, because the other guest passenger, James Meylian, had warned Goings about his fast driving only a few minutes before the accident occurred. In application for certiorari, relator, Marquette Casualty Company, assigned the following errors to the judgment of the Court of Appeal: We find, as did the two lower courts, that Goings was driving at an excessive speed at the time of the accident. Our finding is affirmed by the testimony of plaintiff and the other guest passenger James Meylian, and also by the following testimony of Goings himself: "* * * "* * * James Meylian testified in oral deposition that he had cautioned Goings about his driving, at which time Goings was doing around seventy-five or seventy. Plaintiff affirmed the fact that Meylian had cautioned Goings to slow down some few miles back from the scene of the accident; he said that he did not protest, because "Meylian had already told him one time to slow down." The following testimony of the driver Goings (substantiated by the testimony of Meylian) sets forth his version of the accident: "* * * Not having the benefit of the truck driver's testimony, since he is unknown and therefore not made a party to this suit, we are limited to the evidence presented by the occupants of Goings' car and the State Trooper who investigated the accident. Accepting Goings' testimony as correct relative to the events preceding the accident, we have posed for our determination the questions of whether a sudden emergency was present and whether Goings' conduct under the prevailing circumstances was such as to be a proximate cause of the accident. We find that under the facts and circumstances herein Goings was faced with an emergency, but we do not find that the emergency was one to which he did not contribute nor to which he did not add peril. Goings did not slow down when he approached the bridge (Zanca v. T.S.C. Motor Freight Lines, La.App., 59 So.2d 483), nor did he slow down when he viewed the position of the oncoming truck. Cf. Motors Ins. Co. v. Moore, La.App., 62 So. 2d 150. The evidence, as found supra, affirmatively reflects *137 that Goings was driving at an excessive speed, and that his speed was greater than was reasonable and prudent under the conditions and potential hazards existing. LSA-R.S. 32:64. It was after Goings cut to the right shoulder of the road that he lost control of his car, and it was then that his car careened on the bridge and hit the railing. Speed was certainly a factor in causing this movement of the car; Goings himself testified: The doctrine that, "A motorist confronted by a sudden emergency not caused by him is not held to the same accuracy of judgment or degree of care as in ordinary circumstances. He is not necessarily negligent because he makes a mistake of judgment or fails to adopt the best or wisest course for averting injury, and is not liable for injury if he exercises reasonable care or prudence, considering the circumstances", 60 C.J.S. Motor Vehicles § 257, p. 624, Jones v. Continental Casualty Co. of Chicago, Ill., 246 La. 921, 169 So. 2d 50; Snodgrass v. Centanni, 229 La. 915, 87 So. 2d 127; Fouche v. St. Paul Fire &amp; Marine Insurance Co., La.App., 153 So. 2d 180; Peeples v. Dobson, La.App., 99 So. 2d 161; Walter v. New Amsterdam Casualty Company, La.App., 130 So. 2d 476, is not applicable to the facts of the instant case. It is available only to a person who is proceeding carefully and prudently on the occasion of the sudden emergency and who does not contribute to its creation. Fulmer v. United States Fidelity &amp; Guaranty Co., La.App., 5 So. 2d 923. We conclude that the doctrine that, "A motorist who, by his improper conduct, creates or contributes to an emergency cannot avoid liability for an injury on the ground that he acted in the stress of emergency", 60 C.J.S. Motor Vehicles § 257, p. 628; Independent Oil Refining Co. v. Lueders, 17 La.App. 154, 134 So. 418; Pierce v. Leonard Truck Lines, 18 La.App. 448, 138 So. 199; Stromer v. Dupont, La.App., 150 So. 32, is applicable to the facts herein. We also conclude, as did the Court of Appeal, that Goings was negligent in driving at an excessive rate of speed and that his negligence constituted a proximate cause of plaintiff's injuries. Cf. Independent Oil Refining Co. v. Lueders, supra; Wise v. Agricultural Insurance Company, La.App., 140 So. 2d 662. A guest passenger is not required to monitor the operation of an automobile, nor is he required to pay attention to the road and other traffic conditions in the absence of a showing that he has actual or constructive knowledge that the driver is incompetent or unfit to operate the vehicle. White v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. Co., 222 La. 994, 64 So. 2d 245. He might, however, be denied recovery of damages when he has assumed a particular risk or has not warned the driver of a danger of which he is aware. White v. State Farm Mutual Auto. Ins. Co., supra. As stated supra, Goings had, just prior to the accident, been cautioned of his excessive speed by his guest Meylian. Therefore, we do not find that it was incumbent upon plaintiff to reiterate the warning, nor do we find that he was contributorily negligent in not doing so. No error was assigned in the application for certiorari with respect to the damages ($3,713.25) awarded to plaintiff by the Court of Appeal. For the reasons assigned, the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, is affirmed. All costs are to be paid by defendant. [1] Although plaintiff testified that his name was William R. Smith, he designated himself as William A. Smith in his original petition and this matter is entitled, "William A. Smith vs. Marquette Casualty Company." We shall refer to him as William A. Smith. [2] These facts are recited by the Court of Appeal, 169 So. 2d 750, 751.