Opinion ID: 1791846
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Prior Near Misses

Text: In its second point on appeal, Union Pacific argues that the circuit court erred in admitting evidence of prior near misses at the track crossing where the accident occurred. Union Pacific makes a two-pronged attack on the use of the prior near-miss evidence. First, Union Pacific requests that we endorse a rule that prior near-miss evidence be excluded as a matter of law in railroad-grade-crossing cases. Second, Union Pacific contends that the circuit court erred in admitting the near-miss evidence because the Barbers failed to offer sufficient proof of substantial similarity in conditions. The Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association, through its amicus curiae brief, has urged us to decline Union Pacific's request that near-miss evidence be declared inadmissable as a matter of law.
Union Pacific recognizes that we have already enunciated a rule that near-miss evidence is admissible upon a showing that the events arose out of the same or substantially similar circumstances. See Carter v. Missouri Pacific R.R. Co., 284 Ark. 278, 681 S.W.2d 314 (1984) (quoting Fulwider v. Woods, 249 Ark. 776, 461 S.W.2d 581 (1971)). Nonetheless, we are asked to overrule that case because near-miss evidence is inherently unreliable and unduly prejudicial, and, thus, should be excluded as a matter of law. No case has been cited, and we can find none, that supports a per se exclusion of near-miss evidence. The admissibility of prior similar occurrences has been commonly accepted in Arkansas for many years. See Ford Motor Co. v. Massey, 313 Ark. 345, 855 S.W.2d 897 (1993); Westark Specialties, Inc. v. Stouffer Family, Ltd., 310 Ark. 225, 836 S.W.2d 354 (1992); Fraser v. Harp's Food Stores, Inc., 290 Ark. 186, 718 S.W.2d 92 (1986); Carter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 284 Ark. 278, 681 S.W.2d 314 (1984); Houston General Ins. Co. v. Arkansas Louisiana Gas Co., 267 Ark. 544, 592 S.W.2d 445 (1980); Arkansas Power & Light Co. v. Johnson, 260 Ark. 237, 538 S.W.2d 541 (1976); Fulwider v. Woods, 249 Ark. 776, 461 S.W.2d 581 (1971). In addition, it is generally recognized that evidence of prior similar occurrences is admissible with a showing of sufficient similarity in circumstances. See McCormick on Evidence, 5th ed.1999 p. 703-04 § 200. Thus, Union Pacific presses this court to pioneer a per se exclusion in the face of a sound majority position. While we are urged to adopt a per se rule in railroad-crossing cases, the supporting theory of unreliability is not so limited. Evidence of prior similar occurrences in railroad-crossing cases is not any less reliable than prior similar occurrences in any other context. Furthermore, a necessary predicate to the adoption of a per se exclusion rule would be a decision by this court to break with our prior precedent in Carter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 284 Ark. 278, 681 S.W.2d 314 (1984). We have held that there is a strong presumption of the validity of prior decisions. Bharodia v. Pledger, 340 Ark. 547, 11 S.W.3d 540 (2000). Although we do have the power to overrule previous decisions, it is necessary as a matter of public policy to uphold prior decisions unless great injury or injustice would result. Id. The policy behind stare decisis is to lend predictability and stability to the law. Id. In matters of practice, adherence by a court to its own decisions is necessary and proper for the regularity and uniformity of practice, and that litigants may know with certainty the rules by which they must be governed in the conducting of their cases. Id. Precedent governs until it gives a result so patently wrong, so manifestly unjust, that a break becomes unavoidable. Id. Union Pacific asserts that a near miss leaves no record of the incident. We recognize that there are situations in which a near miss will occur leaving no tangible record of the incident. Yet, this does not mean that a near miss can never be verified or documented. For example, there will be occasions when the near miss is reported to the police, the railroad, or some other agency. Under the rule proposed by Union Pacific, near-miss evidence would be inadmissible regardless of its veracity. The admission of this evidence is considered on a case-by-case basis and the burden rests on the party offering the evidence to prove that the necessary similarity of conditions exists. Westark Specialties, Inc. v. Stouffer Family, Ltd., 310 Ark. 225, 836 S.W.2d 354 (1992). Union Pacific has failed to demonstrate that allowing near-miss testimony into evidence gives rise to a result so patently wrong, so manifestly unjust, that a break in precedent is warranted. Accordingly, we decline to depart from our holding in Carter v. Missouri Pacific R.R. Co., supra .
Prior to trial, Union Pacific moved in limine to prevent any evidence of near misses at the crossing where the accident occurred. The court ruled that it would allow evidence of near misses provided that they occurred within months of the accident. At trial, the Barbers introduced testimony by four witnesses about prior near misses. Union Pacific contends that the prior near-miss testimony elicited at trial did not arise out of circumstances substantially similar to the circumstances of the accident on January 19, 1998, when the garbage truck occupied by Mr. Barber was struck by one of Union Pacific's freight trains. The general rule with respect to the admissibility of evidence of similar occurrences is that it is admissible only upon a showing that the events arose out of the same or substantially similar circumstances. Ford Motor Co. v. Massey, 313 Ark. 345, 855 S.W.2d 897 (1993). The burden rests on the party offering the evidence to prove that the necessary similarity of conditions exists. Id. The relevancy of such evidence is within the trial judge's discretion, subject to reversal only if an abuse of discretion is demonstrated. Id. In Carter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 284 Ark. 278, 681 S.W.2d 314 (1984), we upheld a trial court's ruling to exclude evidence of two prior near-misses. We concluded that the circumstances were not substantially similar because the flashing lights at the crossing had changed. Id. In determining the admissibility of prior similar occurrences, the critical question is whether the similarity of the circumstances makes it reasonable and probable that the same cause existed to produce the accident as did the near misses. See, e.g., Chicago, R.I. & P.R. Co. v. Lynch, 246 Ark. 1282, 441 S.W.2d 793 (1969). Whether an occurrence is substantially similar to the matter at hand depends on the underlying theory of the case. Ford Motor Co. v. Massey, 313 Ark. 345, 855 S.W.2d 897 (1993). For example, evidence submitted to demonstrate a dangerous condition necessitates a high degree of similarity because it weighs directly on the ultimate issue to be decided by the jury. Id. However, the requirement of substantial similarity is relaxed when the evidence of other incidents is used to show notice or awareness of a potential defect in a product. Id. The theory of the Barbers' case was that the crossing was so overgrown with vegetation to the east that drivers attempting to cross could not see to the east without placing their vehicles in the zone of danger immediately adjacent to the track. According to the Barbers, the circumstances that caused the accident in this case are simple. As the garbage truck approached the crossing headed north, the driver looked eastward for a train. By the time the truck's occupants were able to get a clear view to the east, the garbage truck was already at the crossing as a train came into view from the west. The Barbers asserted that due to overgrown vegetation on the south side of the train tracks at County Road Crossing 123, a northbound traveler would be unable to check safely for trains before attempting to cross. They also claimed that the engineer's failure to sound the train's whistle and bell as it approached the crossing exacerbated the situation. The near-miss evidence permitted by the circuit court may be summarized as follows. Susan Thweatt testified that she used the crossing every Sunday to get to church and occasionally to run an errand. Between November and December of 1997, Susan was traveling to church with her husband, Vernon Thweatt, and her two daughters. She was in the backseat with one of her daughters, and Vernon was driving the car southbound. As they approached Crossing 123, Vernon looked both ways and attempted to cross the tracks. At the same time, Susan looked to the east and saw a westbound train approaching. She yelled at her husband, he immediately braked, and then backed up until the train passed. Susan was unable to identify the train as either a Union Pacific or Burlington Northern train and never made a complaint to the railroad. Vernon Thweatt testified about the same incident. He stated that the vegetation was overgrown at Crossing 123 and that he used it about four times per week. At the time of the incident, he was driving south towards the crossing with his wife and two children in the car. Vernon first checked to see that the east was clear and then turned to the west. As he was looking to the west, his wife screamed that a train was approaching from the east. He immediately applied his brakes at which point his bumper was within ten feet of the track. Vernon testified that the train did not sound its whistle or bell at the crossing. Vernon was also unable to identify the train as either a Union Pacific or Burlington Northern train and never made a complaint to the railroad. Troy Meredith testified that he traveled north over Crossing 123 several times on his way to sites where he searched for arrow heads. Mr. Meredith confirmed that the brush and shrubbery on the south side of the track blocked his view to the east as he traveled north. He had an incident in the fall of 1997 at Crossing 123 while traveling north over the tracks where he had to goose [his] car and jump across the track in order to keep from getting hit. As he approached the crossing, he first looked to his west. When he looked to the east, the brush and shrubbery blocked his view. He continued to move forward looking to the east and by the time he could see the westbound train he was in a position where the train would have hit him if he did not continue across the tracks. Lastly, Ray Thweatt testified that he had been using Crossing 123 for fifty to sixty years. Ray also confirmed that the vegetation to the east blocked his view of the track. Twice in 1997, while traveling north over the crossing, he got so close to the tracks that he was startled when he finally saw an eastbound train. In this case, Mr. Barber's accident resulted as the Union Pacific train traveled east and the garbage truck traveled north over the crossing. Susan and Vernon Thweatt's near miss stemmed from a southbound approach to the crossing and a westbound train. Mr. Meredith's incident, on the other hand, occurred while he traveled north over the crossing and the train traveled west. In First Security Bank v. Union Pac. R.R. Co., 152 F.3d 877 (8th Cir.1998), the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that the trial court did not err in excluding prior accidents where the drivers and the plaintiff were traveling in opposite directions, and, thus, had entirely different perspectives of the crossing. Likewise, Susan and Vernon Thweatt's view of the crossing from the north side was entirely different from the garbage truck driver's view on the south side of the crossing. The vegetation on the north side of the track has little relevance in determining a view from the south side of the crossing. We conclude that the trial court abused its discretion in admitting Susan and Vernon's testimony. Nonetheless, the danger complained of stemmed from overgrown vegetation on the south side of the track. The cause of the accident was impaired visibility to northbound travelers as a result of overgrown vegetation on the south side of the track. For both Mr. Meredith and Mr. Barber, the view to the east was obscured by the vegetation on the south side of the track as they approached the crossing heading north. One difference in the circumstances of the accident and Mr. Meredith's near miss is that the trains were traveling in different directions. The issue here, however, is whether the vegetation on the south side of the track was a danger to northbound travelers regardless of which direction the train was traveling. Mr. Meredith's testimony reveals that he and Mr. Barber were in a substantially similar circumstance  the drivers in both vehicles had to inch forward to look east down the track for a train. Likewise, Roy Thweatt's near miss was caused by overgrown vegetation on the south side of the track obscuring his view to the east. Due to the high degree of similarity, we cannot conclude that the circuit court abused its discretion in admitting the near-miss testimony of Troy Meredith and Roy Thweatt. Union Pacific also contends that the trial court erred because none of the parties could identify the near-miss trains as Union Pacific trains. As such, Union Pacific argues that the evidence is irrelevant to show notice of a defect or condition. Evidence of similar occurrences is admissible when the notice of a danger or defect is in issue. Fraser v. Harp's Food Stores, Inc., 290 Ark. 186, 718 S.W.2d 92 (1986). Evidence of similar occurrences is also admissible to demonstrate a dangerous condition. Ford Motor Co. v. Massey, supra . As already stated, the theory of the Barbers' case was that the crossing was so overgrown with vegetation on the south side of the track that drivers attempting to cross could not see to the east without placing their vehicles in the zone of danger immediately adjacent to the track. Under this theory, notice is not relevant; rather, the testimony of Troy Meredith and Roy Thweatt was properly admitted to demonstrate a dangerous condition. In sum, while the circuit court abused its discretion in admitting Vernon and Susan Thweatt's near-miss testimony, we will not reverse a trial court's ruling on evidentiary matters absent a showing of prejudice. Dodson v. Allstate Ins. Co., 345 Ark. 430, 47 S.W.3d 866 (2001). Evidentiary error may not be predicated upon a ruling that admits evidence unless it affects a substantial right of the party. Ark. R. Evid. 103(a) (2003); Luedemann v. Wade, 323 Ark. 161, 913 S.W.2d 773 (1996). We have repeatedly held that an evidentiary error is harmless if the same or similar evidence is otherwise introduced at the trial. Luedemann v. Wade, supra ; Williams v. Southwestern Bell, 319 Ark. 626, 893 S.W.2d 770 (1995); Shamlin v. Shuffield, 302 Ark. 164, 787 S.W.2d 687 (1990); Thompson v. AAA Lumber Co., 245 Ark. 518, 432 S.W.2d 873 (1968). In light of the other near-miss evidence that was properly admitted at trial, we cannot say that Vernon and Susan Thweatt's testimony, which was merely cumulative, resulted in prejudice to Union Pacific. Accordingly, we affirm on this point.