Court Opinion

ID: 9853458
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 05:49:14.145958+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:22:49.251070
License: Public Domain

Pannell, Judge,
dissenting. I concur with the dissenting opinion of Judge Whitman. I would like to add, however, that irrespective of the other questions of law or the disagreement amongst us as to them, one question relating to the evidence controls the entire case and as a matter of law demands an affirmance of the trial judge. There were several motions, pleas, etc., of the insurer, some in its name alone and some in the name of John Doe, all of which, meritorious or not, were dependent upon proof that Hilton Cosby Hall, Jr., was the driver of the truck which struck the plaintiff’s automobile. A general motion for summary judgment was made and a general motion was denied. We do not know just on which motion, plea or portion of the answer the motion for summary judgment was made, which fact alone might have authorized its denial; but as I view the case, it is not necessary to base an affirmance on this ground for the reason that of the defenses which required this proof none of them was sustainable under the evidence adduced.
There was no evidence adduced which was sufficient to demand a finding that Hilton Cosby Hall, Jr., was the driver of the truck, or even authorized it for that matter. There is evidence of possible probative value that Hall was the owner of the truck because the truck was registered in his name according to the tag number thereon. This may be a circumstance which may be considered with all proper evidence, but standing alone is not sufficient proof to authorize a finding that Hall was driving the truck. All of the remaining evidence is pure hearsay and of no probative value. The State patrolman who investigated testified that a Negro boy pointed Hall out to him as the man who got out of the truck when it stopped shortly after the collision a considerable distance down the road. His report, showing Hall as the driver, was admitted in evidence. It is clear that the testimony of the officer relating to Hall being the driver of the truck is pure hearsay. Does admission in evi*567dence, without objection, of his “business” report in which he lists Hall as the driver prevent the evidence from being hearsay, and give it probative value? Were there no explanation of the source of information on the reports, the portion of the report pertaining to Hall being the driver might have.probative value under the business records statutes, but in my opinion where the officer himself discloses that the information on his report is pure hearsay, it has no probative value. The business records statute (Code Ann. § 38-711) is based upon an assumption that someone with personal knowledge had a hand in making the entries on the business record. See Knudsen v. Duffee-Freeman, Inc., 95 Ga. App. 872 (99 SE2d 370) in which this court said: “It makes admissible writings and records kept in the regular course of business, unverified by persons who made such writings or the entries which make up such records.” However, even should we assume that the evidence in the business record as to Hall is admissible (it was actually admitted) and that it has probative value, the evidence would still not demand a finding that Hall was the driver of the truck. The statute itself expressly provides: “All other circumstances of the making of such writing or record, including lack of personal knowledge by the entrant or maker, may be shown to affect its weight, but they shall not affect its admissibility.” Since lack of personal knowledge by the entrant or maker of the business record here has been shown, it is a matter for the jury to determine the weight and credit to be given such business report (see Allstate Ins. Co. v. Buck, 96 Ga. App. 376 (100 SE2d 142)), even if we should agree that it is not hearsay and not lacking in probative value. Certified copies of court proceedings showing that Hall pleaded guilty to criminal charges of hitting plaintiff’s automobile and leaving the scene of the accident and testimony of others that Hall pleaded guilty were also submitted. The majority seemingly consider this evidence admissible by a party against his interest under the exception to the hearsay rule citing Henderson v. Henderson, 94 Ga. App. 64, 72 (93 SE2d 822) and Akin v. Randolph Motors, Inc., 95 Ga. App. 841, 848 (99 SE2d 358). I quote from these cases cited by the majority as follows: “In a civil action instituted for damages on grounds *568of negligence for the violation of a penal statute admissions by the defendant tending to show guilt whether made in or out of court, are competent evidence as such. The reason that such evidence is admissible is not because a plea of guilty in a court has any particular sanctity on the trial of a civil action, but only because such plea constitutes an admission that the defendant was at fault.” Henderson v. Henderson, 94 Ga. App. 64 (1), supra. “Admissions against interest by parties to the record constitute original evidence, but admissions by a third party who is not a party to the action, and which do not come under one of the exceptions stated in the Code, are hearsay. The trial court properly excluded evidence of a plea of guilty to a traffic violation on the part of a third party not joined in the litigation and not appearing as a witness therein.” Akin v. Randolph Motors, Inc., 95 Ga. App. 841 (5), supra. In both these cases, the evidence submitted was as to an admission made by a party to the case being heard, and this exception applies only in such a situation. Lumpkin v. American Surety Co., 69 Ga. App. 887 (27 SE2d 412); Green, Georgia Law of Evidence 519, 522, §§ 233, 237. I know of no case where this rule has been applied where the person making admission was not a party to the case or in privity with the party thereto. Hall is not a party here but he is a party to two cases filed subsequently to the present ones. The majority do not contend or state that Hall is a party to the present cases, but base their conclusions on the theory that it would be ludicrous to hold that this evidence was inadmissible in this case and that it was admissible in the cases against Hall or vice versa. There is a basic reason for admitting such evidence as an admission by a party and in not admitting such evidence where the party making the admission is not a party to the case. I do not think that the law in this regard is ludicrous nor do I think that a whole body of law developed over the centuries should be summarily cast aside or ignored, merely because through misunderstanding the law it may appear to be ludicrous. If we think it is ludicrous, then we should vote to overrule this great body of the law on the probative value of hearsay evidence. That I am not prepared to do.
*569However, even should I assume that there is some proof of the identity of Hall as being the same person as Hilton Cosby Hill as shown in the statement signed by the plaintiff by applying the doctrine of idem sonans (plaintiff denied this name was in the statement when he signed it; see, however, Canal Ins. Co. v. Tate, 111 Ga. App. 377 (141 SE2d 851) which holds that such proof does not demand a finding of the same identity), this proof would only apply in reference to the signed statement of the plaintiff where the party named Hill was inserted in a form. In other words, the doctrine of idem sonans merely gets rid of the difference between Hall and Hill and shows merely that Hill and Hall are one and the same person. It proves nothing else, and does not get rid of the insufficiency of the proof that Hall had connection with the collision. The majority in effect hold that Hall is the real party at interest in this case stating as their reasons for so holding the following: “The question of law in the case sub judice is whether the evidence presented by the insurer that Hall was the driver of the truck would be sufficient proof of identity in a suit brought by the plaintiff against Hall. If the finding is affirmative then the driver is not unknown. The issue of the identity of the driver is the same in each case and the answer here is derivative of what the answer would be in a suit against Hall. It would be ludicrous ter exclude evidence in this case that would be admissible in a suit against Hall or admit evidence in this case which would be excluded in a suit against Hall.” That the issue in a case in which Hall is a party may be the same as the issue in this case furnishes no grounds or reason for holding that Hall is the real party at interest in the present case. I do not understand how the fact that since the issue of identity of the driver is the same in the present case as it will be in the cases against Hall makes evidence which would be admissible in the cases against Hall admissible in cases in which he is not a party; or how the “answer” here on the issue is “derivative” of what the answer would be in an entirely different case. The majority in effect are determining the answer in a suit against Hall which has not yet been tried, and in which the evidence may be entirely different. In these cases, Hall might explain his admission to the satisfaction of the jury.
*570The motion for summary judgment was one in favor of the defendant insurer “upon the complaint ... on the ground that the identity of the alleged tortfeasor is not unknown to plaintiff and that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving parties are entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” A motion to stay the present case until the disposition of the cases subsequently filed against Hall was made on the same grounds and is still pending before the lower court. In my opinion, the proper practice would be to grant the stay rather than to dismiss the case on motion for summary judgment on the complaint as is done by the majority here. The majority raises very pertinent questions: If, on the trial of the cases against Hall, he should convince the jury he was not the driver of the truck that struck the plaintiff, could the plaintiff rebring his John Doe action? And if he could rebring it, could the statute of limitation run against him in the meantime? The fact that the result reached by the majority poses these questions demonstrates the fallacy thereof.
For these additional reasons, I cannot agree with the majority ruling. I am authorized to state that Judge Whitman concurs in this additional dissent.