Opinion ID: 1247974
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: finding of negligence against brandon

Text: In her final assignment of error, JoAnn asserts that the district court erred in finding that Brandon was contributorily negligent. The court reduced the damage award by 1 percent due to such negligence. The district court made no specific finding as to how Brandon was negligent. Negligence must be measured against the particular set of facts and circumstances which are present in each case. Norman v. Ogallala Pub. Sch. Dist., 259 Neb. 184, 609 N.W.2d 338 (2000). A plaintiff is contributorily negligent if (1) he or she fails to protect himself or herself from injury, (2) his or her conduct concurs and cooperates with the defendant's actionable negligence, and (3) his or her conduct contributes to his or her injuries as a proximate cause. Nickell v. Russell, 260 Neb. 1, 614 N.W.2d 349 (2000); Carroll v. Chase County, 259 Neb. 780, 612 N.W.2d 231 (2000); Baldwin v. City of Omaha, 259 Neb. 1, 607 N.W.2d 841 (2000). Whether contributory negligence is present in a particular case is a question for the trier of fact. Harrison v. Seagroves, 250 Neb. 495, 549 N.W.2d 644 (1996). Although the district court stated no basis for its finding that Brandon was negligent, the county asserts several bases which the county claims support a finding that Brandon was negligent. The county first asserts that Brandon failed to give consistent, complete, and accurate statements to law enforcement, including failing to report that Lotter and Nissen had threatened her life. However, this assertion is not supported by the record. The record shows that the information Brandon provided was generally consistent, complete, and accurate and was additionally supported by statements given by witnesses and by physical evidence. The claim that Brandon never told law enforcement that Lotter and Nissen threatened her life is also not supported by the record. Although the tape-recorded interview itself does not contain a statement by Brandon regarding the threat, Laux admitted that Brandon told him that Lotter and Nissen had threatened her. The county next alleges Brandon failed to keep the sheriff's office accurately informed as to her whereabouts and failed to return for the second interview on December 29, 1993. However, the evidence does not demonstrate how Brandon's conduct in failing to keep the sheriff's office accurately informed as to her whereabouts and failing to return for the second December 29 interview concurred and cooperated with the county's negligence. The county was negligent by failing to protect Brandon. The record is absolutely clear that there was never any plan to provide protection to Brandon, which would require her to keep law enforcement accurately informed as to her whereabouts. Furthermore, nothing in the record indicates that Brandon's failure to return for the second December 29 interview contributed to the county's failure to protect Brandon. The record also indicates that when Brandon arrived at the courthouse for the second December 29 interview, Lotter and Nissen were outside, so Brandon did not go in. The record further fails to show that Brandon's conduct contributed to the injury as a proximate cause. A proximate cause is a cause (1) that produces a result in a natural and continuous sequence and (2) without which the result would not have occurred. Norman, supra . The record does not show that had Brandon kept law enforcement accurately informed of her whereabouts or returned for the second interview on December 29, 1993, the result would have been different. The record shows that the county took no action to protect Brandon and had no plan to do so, regardless of Brandon's whereabouts or whether she returned for the second December 29 interview. We find no evidence in the record to support a finding that Brandon was contributorily negligent. The district court's finding of 1 percent contributory negligence against Brandon was clearly wrong.