Title: Kleinjan v. Knutson
Citation: 207 N.W.2d 247
Docket Number: 8867
State: north-dakota
Issuer: north-dakota Supreme Court
Date: April 13, 1973

207 N.W.2d 247 (1973) Kevin KLEINJAN, by his next friend Walter Kleinjan, and Walter Kleinjan, Plaintiffs and Respondents, v. Darron KNUTSON, Defendant and Appellant. Civ. No. 8867. Supreme Court of North Dakota. April 13, 1973. Rehearing Denied May 11, 1973. *248 Hjellum, Weiss, Nerison, Jukkala &amp; Vinje, Jamestown, for defendant and appellant. Kenneth M. Moran, Jamestown, for plaintiffs and respondents. ERICKSTAD, Judge. The defendant Darron Knutson appeals from a judgment entered in the district court of Stutsman County on July 17, 1972, in which the plaintiff Walter Kleinjan, as the father of the minor Kevin Kleinjan, was awarded $655.45, and the plaintiff Kevin Kleinjan was awarded $2,500, both exclusive of costs. The district judge was the trier of the facts as well as the law. The court's findings may be summarized as follows: Kevin, the son of Walter Kleinjan, was born on January 12, 1962; on July 8, 1971, at approximately 12:40 p.m., Kevin was riding his bicycle in a southerly direction on Second Avenue Northeast in Jamestown when his bicycle was struck by an *249 automobile owned and driven by Darron Knutson, while that vehicle was being driven in an easterly direction on Eighth Street Northeast (the collision occurring in the southwest quadrant of the intersection); the collision was proximately caused by the negligence of Darron, who failed to keep a proper lookout and to yield the right-of-way to Kevin; Kevin was not negligent, since he entered the intersection a distinct and appreciable interval before Darron's vehicle entered the intersection, thus giving Kevin the right-of-way; had there been any negligence on Kevin's part, the doctrine of last clear chance would relieve Kevin of his negligence, making Darron's negligence the sole proximate cause of the collision; as a result of the collision caused by Darron's negligence, Kevin suffered a severe break of his right leg in two places, which injury resulted in hospitalization, medical care, considerable pain and suffering, the wearing of a leg cast and the use of crutches for several months; and as a result of the injuries, Walter Kleinjan has incurred $655.45 in doctor, hospital, optometrist, and ambulance expenses, and Kevin has sustained $2,500 in damages. Darron specifies as error the following: On appeal during oral argument Darron's negligence was conceded and specification of error No. 1 abandoned. It is Darron's contention that the record conclusively shows that Kevin was contributorily negligent and that accordingly the judgment should be reversed and the plaintiffs' complaint be dismissed. Before we undertake to review the evidence in light of the specifications of error, we think it important to note that since amendment of our rules of civil procedure, effective August 1, 1971, the trial court's findings of fact are not to be set aside unless clearly erroneous, and due regard must be given to the opportunity of the trial court to judge the credibility of the witnesses. See Rule 52(a), N.D.R.Civ.P. It follows that if we are to apply this rule, we must apply as a corollary the rule that is applied in jury cases when the sufficiency of the evidence to support the verdict is questioned, and that is that in determining the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the verdict (here, judge's findings) the evidence must be viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict. Armstrong v. Miller, 189 N.W.2d 688 at 691 (N.D.1971); Gleson v. Thompson, 154 N.W.2d 780 at 786 (N.D.1967); Degenstein v. Ehrman, 145 N.W.2d 493 at 503 (N.D.1966). Viewing the evidence in that light, what do we find? Julius Wedman, a policeman for the City of Jamestown, testified that he investigated *250 the accident involving Darron Knutson and Kevin Kleinjan, arriving at the scene of the accident at about 12:45 p.m., July 8, 1971; that the accident occurred at the intersection of Second Avenue Northeast and Eighth Street Northeast; that prior to the accident Darron had been proceeding in a 1966 Chevelle two-door automobile in an easterly direction on Eighth Street, and Kevin had been proceeding in a southerly direction on a bicycle on Second Avenue Northeast; that the avenue at the intersection is 48' 4" wide; that when he arrived at the scene, the automobile was resting at the center of the intersection with part of the vehicle north of an imaginary centerline; that the bicycle was found only two feet east of the front of the automobile; that skidmarks were found extending 26' 9" to the right rear wheel and 22' 6" to the left rear wheel of the automobile; that he talked to Kevin at the scene of the accident and later at the hospital, and that Kevin said that he did not see the vehicle until he collided in the intersection with it, as there was a westbound vehicle on Eighth Street Northeast which blocked his view; that the skidmarks commenced west of the place where the automobile came to rest, wholly within the intersection; that he talked to Darron at the scene of the accident and that Darron told him that he did not see Kevin until he hit him. Kevin testified that he was nine and a half years old at the time of the accident; that he had just finished the third grade that spring; that he was on the day of the accident on his way to gymnastics and baseball practice at the high school; that as he approached the intersection he saw a blue car coming from the east going west, so he stopped and looked both ways and seeing nothing proceeded into the intersection; that he went straight into the intersection and then was hit; that he was three-fourths careful, maybe one-fourth not careful; that he received mostly A's in school; that he had ridden a bicycle since he was about six years of age; that the bicycle he was riding was a three-speed Sears model; that the blue car was about one-half block to the west of the intersection when he proceeded to enter the intersection (under extensive cross-examination he said, "It was right about down to Nickeus Park", which park is one block west of the intersection); and that he started into the intersection from a stopped position on Second Avenue Northeast about one foot north of the crosswalk. Darron Knutson testified that he was eighteen years of age at the time of the accident; that he had just finished his sophomore year at Augustana College; that immediately preceding the accident he had been driving his automobile in an easterly direction on Eighth Street; that he slowed down as he approached the intersection with Second Avenue Northeast; that he looked left and right and saw nothing and then proceeded through the intersection; that when he first saw Kevin's bicycle it looked like it was right in front of him; that he put on his brakes and then hit him; that he wasn't looking at the speedometer, but that he would guess that he was traveling fifteen or twenty miles per hour before he started to slow down; that after he slowed down and before entering the intersection he was probably traveling ten to fifteen miles per hour; that at the time he hit Kevin, Kevin was looking directly south and showed no indication of having seen him; that when he saw Kevin he immediately put on the brakes; that he did not see the oncoming blue car testified to by Kevin; that if there was such an oncoming blue car it would not have obscured his vision; that he uses contact lenses but that he wasn't wearing them at the time. Pertinent is the following part of the cross-examination of Darron: Pertinent also is Darron's testimony on cross-examination in which he concedes that he accelerated his car after first slowing down before entering the intersection. In light of this evidence, the trial court found that Kevin was not negligent. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court's findings of fact, we cannot say the findings are clearly erroneous. In support of specification of error No. 3, that the court erred in finding that Kevin was not negligent, Darron refers us to the cases of Schweitzer v. Anderson, 83 N.W.2d 416 (N.D.1957), and Enget v. Neff, 77 N.D. 356, 43 N.W.2d 644 (1950). To those two cases could be added a third case, Moe v. Kettwig, 68 N.W.2d 853 (N.D.1955), if we are to consider three relatively recent decisions involving the care that is required to be exercised by a young child for his own safety. In each of the three cases, the court held that whether the young child was contributorily negligent under the facts was a question of fact for the jury. Each case applied the rule that "a child can only be held to that degree of care which ordinarily prudent children of its age, experience and judgment are wont to use under like circumstances". Schweitzer v. Anderson, Syllabus No. 4, 83 N.W.2d 416 (N.D.1957). In Schweitzer the defendant Ardeen Anderson and three of her lady friends left their place of employment in the city of Fargo at about ten minutes to twelve o'clock noon, to go to the Powers Hotel for lunch. With Mrs. Anderson driving her automobile, they proceeded south on Thirteenth or Fourteenth Street to Fourth Avenue North where they turned east. They then proceeded east on Fourth Avenue North to a point about 130 feet east of Tenth Street, where an accident occurred. Woodrow Wilson School was located on Fourth Avenue between Twelfth and Thirteenth Streets. As they passed the school, Mrs. Anderson saw the children who had just been dismissed for noon recess. When they reached the intersection of Fourth *252 Avenue and Tenth Street, Mrs. Anderson stopped her car for the stop light and thereafter she proceeded to drive through the intersection at a speed of approximately ten to fifteen miles per hour. On the south side of Fourth Avenue east of the intersection were two parked cars. The first car was about 100 feet from the intersection. As Mrs. Anderson was about to drive by the first of these cars, the plaintiff Michael Schweitzer, a seven-year-old boy, ran out from between the two cars. Mrs. Anderson immediately applied her brakes, but did not attempt to avoid striking Michael by turning, "as there wasn't time". In upholding the jury verdict for Michael, the court said: Applying that rule, giving the trial court's findings in the instant case the same weight as a jury verdict, we conclude that the trial court's findings should be sustained. We cannot say that the judge's "verdict" is so clearly wrong that no reasonable man could agree to it. We believe that this determination resolves this case; however, lest it be thought that we have not considered specifications of error No. 2 and No. 4, we shall briefly discuss them. Those specifications are that the court erred in finding as a fact that the defendant failed to yield the right-of-way to the plaintiff and that the court erred in finding as a fact that the plaintiff had pre-empted the intersection despite the fact that the defendant had the directional right-of-way. In support of these specifications, Darron refers us to two sections of the Century Code. They read: Considering the evidence in the light most favorable to the judge's findings, Section 39-10-22 does not appear to be applicable, the trial court having found that the two vehicles did not enter the intersection at approximately the same time. Whether two vehicles approach or enter an intersection from different highways at approximately the same time is a factual question to be decided by the trier of the facts. In this case the judge was the trier of the facts and it was his view that the bicycle, being a much slower vehicle when operated by a nine-year-old boy from a stopped position, of necessity had to have entered the intersection an appreciable length of time ahead of the automobile to reach the center of the intersection and beyond before being hit by the automobile. We do not think that this was such an unreasonable finding that it should be set aside as being clearly erroneous. Having concluded that the trial court was not clearly erroneous in finding *253 that Kevin was not contributorily negligent, we need not in this case dwell at length on the specification of error which asserts that the trial court was in error in applying the doctrine of last clear chance. Sufficient for today, and perhaps as a guide for tomorrow, we quote the opening and closing paragraphs of an article entitled "The Rationale of Last Clear Chance", written by Malcolm M. MacIntyre in 1940, then a member of the faculty of law of the University of Alberta. M. MacIntyre, LIII Harv.L.Rev. 1225, 1251, 1252 (1940). In the instant case, we have a situation which Professor Prosser describes as involving an inattentive plaintiff. California, which is considered to be a discovered-peril jurisdiction for purposes of the doctrine of last clear chance, has restated its doctrine as recently as 1957. How we should today apply the doctrine is merely an academic question, as we need not apply it is the instant case, and we may not need to apply it in the future unless a case arises raising this issue before House Bill 1509 of the 43rd Legislative Assembly of North Dakota (1973 Session) becomes effective. House Bill 1509 adopts the doctrine of comparative negligence and, as we have seen, according to some authorities eliminates the need of the application of the doctrine of last clear chance. For those students of the law who are interested in the development of the doctrine of last clear chance and its application in jurisdictions which have adopted the statute or rule providing for apportionment of damages, we refer them to the following. Gregory, Loss Distribution by Comparative Negligence, 21 Minn.L.R. 1 at 1 (1936-37); James, Last Clear Chance: A Transitional Doctrine, 47 Yale L.J. 704 (1938); Comment, 18 NACCA L.J. 474 (1956); Prosser, Comparative Negligence, 51 Mich.L.R. 465 (1953); Comments, 48 Iowa L.R. 743 (1962-63); Annot., Last Clear Chance Doctrine, 59 A.L.R.2d 1257, 1261. By way of passing comment, it is interesting to note that our Legislature as early as 1915 recognized the need for apportionment of damages and the repeal of the doctrine of contributory negligence in its Employers' Liability Act affecting railroads. See Chapter 207, Section 2, 1951 Session Laws, now Section 49-16-03, N.D.C.C. For the reasons stated in this opinion, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed. STRUTZ, C.J., and KNUDSON and PAULSON, JJ., concur. *255 TEIGEN, Judge (concurring specially and dissenting in part). I concur in the result and in the syllabus of the majority except for Syllabus No. 4 and that part of the opinion written to support it. The majority have given the trial court's findings in this case "the same weight as a jury verdict". The majority have reasoned that, under Rule 52(a), N.D.R.Civ.P., which states that the "findings of fact shall not be set aside unless clearly erroneous, and that due regard shall be given to the opportunity of the trial court to judge of the credibility of the witnesses," This court adopted verbatim the above quoted portion of Rule 52(a) from the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure with the object of attaining uniformity, and also to have the benefit of the decisions of the federal courts interpreting their rules. Wright and Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure, Section 2585, sets forth the results of their examination into the federal cases, and the advisory committee notes, as to the meaning of the "clearly erroneous" rule. It states as follows: On the basis of this history I am of the opinion that we should adhere to our interpretation of Rule 52(a) as set forth in Kee v. Redlin, 203 N.W.2d 423 (N.D.1972). However, viewing the evidence in the light which I suggest, I conclude that the trial court's findings of fact must be sustained.