Court Opinion

ID: 9655564
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-23 19:15:31.833024+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:13:19.193119
License: Public Domain

JAMES R. DOWD, Judge,
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent.
I agree that Union Electric has a duty to give notice of its power lines to pilots in a manner that makes them reasonably safe. I do not, however, believe that a pilot with a blood alcohol level of .114 striking these power lines is foreseeable1 *145or that there was evidence presented at trial sufficient for us to conclude that these lines were unreasonably dangerous to normally flying aircraft. The majority here expands the duty to give notice by attaching marker balls to power lines well beyond what was previously required by state and federal law.
I agree with the majority’s statement of the general principles of law governing the determination of when a duty to take precautions exists. But I think it appropriate to emphasize Dean Prosser’s admonition that “duty is entirely a question of law, to be determined by reference to the body of statutes, rules, principles and precedents which make up the law; and it must be determined only by the court.” PROSSER and Keeton on the Law of Torts at 236 (5th ed.1984) (emphasis added). This judicial determination of the existence of a duty
rests on sound public policy as derived from a calculus of factors: among them, the social consensus that the interest is worthy of protection; the foreseeability of harm and the degree of certainty that the protected person suffered injury; moral blame society attaches to the conduct; the prevention of future harm; consideration of cost and ability to spread the risk of loss; the economic burden upon the actor and the community ...
Hoover’s Dairy, Inc. v. Mid-America Dairymen, Inc/Special Products, Inc., 700 S.W.2d 426, 432 (Mo.1985) (quotation and citations omitted). The grim calculation of factors is made all the more difficult in this case because Mr. Arbeitman was clearly acting as a “good Samaritan” at the time of this tragic accident. Still, it remains the court’s duty to weigh and balance these factors. The concept of comparative fault, upon which this case was submitted to the jury, offers us no solace because that issue is not reached until we determine that a duty exists.
Here, there is no statutory duty to place marker balls on these wires because the wires are only 105 feet above the ground,2 so we look to the case law to determine whether there is a duty to attach marker balls to these wires.
Lopez v. Three Rivers Electric Cooperative, Inc., 26 S.W.3d 151 (Mo. banc 2000), cited by the majority, is the only Missouri case to address the duty to attach marker balls to power lines. In that case, the Supreme Court concluded that though the power company complied with FAA regulations, it had a duty to attach marker balls to its lines because of a prior wire strike and because the towers were hidden by trees and the wires blended in with the surrounding landscape. Id. at 157.
The Lopez court cites Poelstra v. Basin Electric Cooperative, 545 N.W.2d 823, 827 (S.D.1996), which employed a similar approach to determine when power lines must be marked. Lopez, 26 S.W.3d at 156. In Poelstra the Supreme Court of South Dakota adopted the following standard:
no duty or breach of duty exists as a matter of law where the following elements exist: the height of the power *146lines and their location are in compliance with applicable ordinances and FAA regulations; no notice of prior accidents of a similar kind involving the power lines exist; and the power lines, as constructed, do not create an unreasonable risk of harm.
Id. at 827 (quoting Florida Power & Light Co. v. Lively, 465 So.2d 1270, 1274 (Fla.Ct. App.1985), review denied, 476 So.2d 674 (Fla.1985)).3
The Lopez court also cites Davis v. Cessna Aircraft Corp., 182 Ariz. 26, 893 P.2d 26, 31, 33 (App.1994), which emphasizes that before a duty to attach marker balls will arise the wires in question must constitute an unreasonable risk of harm. Lopez, 26 S.W.3d at 156. In Davis, an airplane collided with unmarked power lines while allegedly attempting an emergency landing on an interstate highway, killing all four persons in the plane. Survivors of the decedents sued the Arizona Public Service Company (APS) for negligently failing to mark the lines so that they were visible to aircraft. Davis, 893 P.2d at 29. The trial court concluded that APS owed no duty of care to the decedents and granted summary judgment in favor of APS. The Arizona Court of Appeals held that “failure to mark its power lines did not create an unreasonable risk of harm to normally operating aircraft and therefore, APS did not breach its duty to decedents to guard against the risk of unreasonable harm ...” Id. at 29, 893 P.2d 26 (emphasis added); see also Lea v. Baumann Surgical Supplies, 321 So.2d 844, 855 (La.Ct.App.1975). The record here is uncontroverted that Arbeitman failed to comply with the most basic rules of safe flying, and that the power lines did not pose an unreasonable risk of harm to normally operating aircraft.
First, as Davis makes clear, the duty to affix marker balls to lines arises when the wires pose an unreasonable risk to normally operating aircraft. Davis, 893 P.2d at 29, 32. “A person responsible for a dangerous condition that is likely to cause injury to persons rightfully in its proximity is charged with taking appropriate precautions to avoid injury to such persons, and his failure to take such precautions constitutes negligence.” Zuber v. Clarkson Const. Co., 363 Mo. 352, 251 S.W.2d 52, 55 (banc 1952) (emphasis added). There is no duty to take precautionary measures to prevent injuries that result from “peculiar, unusual and unexpected occurrences” that could not have been reasonably anticipated. Id. In the absence of notice to the contrary, persons are entitled to assume that others will exercise due care for their own safety. Taylor v. Dale Freeman Corp., 389 S.W.2d 57, 61 (Mo. 1965).
Those who possess structures that may be obstacles to navigation can expect that pilots will observe certain minimal levels of conduct. Davis, 893 P.2d at 32. Among these are that pilots will not be intoxicated. A helicopter operated by an individual with Arbeitman’s blood alcohol content, flying at so low an altitude two miles from any emergency and more than three nautical miles from an airport, is not a normally operating aircraft. It is more akin to the pilot in Davis attempting to land on an interstate highway.
Second, in every case where a court has found a duty to mark power lines one or more of the following were present: (1) prior wire strikes or actual notice of dan*147ger,4 (2) support towers above the 200 foot floor established by FAA regulation,5 (3) obscured support towers,6 and (4) configurations of support towers which could fool a pilot because they result in lines hanging from one set of towers that are actually above another set of support towers.7 None of these facts exist here. The power lines here have traversed this span of river without incident since 1913. They comply with all state and federal regulations.
In finding the existence of a duty the majority relies on testimony from plaintiffs expert witness to establish that the towers here, like those in Lopez, provide insufficient warning to pilots of the wires hanging between them. Although “expert testimony might be relevant to help establish some underlying fact on which duty may ultimately rest, whether a duty exists is not a question for expert testimony, but one for the trial court based on the facts viewed in a light most favorable to the plaintiff.” Bums v. Black & Veatch Architects, Inc., 854 S.W.2d 450, 453 (Mo.App. 1993). I do not believe plaintiffs’ expert provided evidence sufficient to allow us to conclude that these lines pose an unreasonable risk of danger because the towers here are remarkably different from the towers described in Lopez.
Plaintiffs’ expert admitted that one of the most fundamental rules of safe flying is to fly above the towers that support power lines. See also Baumann Surgical Supplies, 321 So.2d at 850; Shute v. Moon Lake Elec. Ass’n, 899 F.2d 999, 1002 (10th Cir.1990). If the towers are clearly visible, a pilot obeying the simplest rules of safe flying is warned of the presence of the wires and knows that he must stay above the towers to be safe. Central, therefore, to the determination that power lines pose an unreasonable risk of danger is whether the support towers provide sufficient notice of the wires between them. This point was emphasized in Lopez. Lopez, 26 5.W.3d at 157. Testimony in Lopez established that “the supporting structures, located on the banks of the river, were not visible from a distance of one mile in either direction and were obstructed.” Id. at 157 (emphasis added). Here the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, does not support a finding that the towers are “not visible,” “obstructed,” or even difficult to see.
The only evidence in the record to suggest that the Union Electric’s towers are not clearly visible is the testimony of plaintiffs expert, who on direct examination testified that: *148(emphasis added). Plaintiffs’ expert does not testify that the towers are “not clearly visible.” He does not testify that the towers are in any way “hidden” or “obscured.” He does not testify that a reasonably attentive pilot would not see the towers. He states only that “you don’t see the towers to catch your attention” and “they don’t jump out at you.” (emphasis added). Any suggestion that the real meaning of this testimony is that the towers are “not visible” or “hidden” or “obscured” is defeated by the testimony of plaintiffs’ own witnesses.
*147The span is about 1,300 feet, if I recall correctly, between the towers which is a fairly long span so you don’t see the towers to catch your attention. The towers themselves, one of them is kind of up on a hill and the other is in a bunch of trees so that they don’t jump out at you to kind of warn you that there is something coming up.
*148There is undisputed testimony that the towers on Iowa Island stand 170 feet above the ground. Plaintiffs’ expert testified on direct that the trees on the island are between 50 and 100 feet tall. These towers, then, are at least 70 feet taller than the surrounding trees. Emily Entra-ba, a witness called by plaintiffs, testified on cross-examination that the towers on Iowa Island are “substantially above the trees” and that their silver color “contrasts” with the color of the surrounding foliage. There is also undisputed evidence that the towers in Illinois are on a hill, stand 90 feet above the ground on that hill and are not surrounded by trees. These towers are so conspicuous a feature of the landscape that boaters use them as a reference point and meeting place.
During cross-examination, the following testimony was elicited from plaintiffs’ expert:
Q Now, are towers like this something that you as a pilot would be aware of when you fly?
A Yes.
Q Okay, and what do towers like this tell you?
A That there is utility lines on the tower someplace.
Q They not only serve to support the utility lines but they’re pretty large structures that can be seen, do you agree?
A That is correct.
Q And that tower tells you that there are probably utility lines coming off from it in either direction?
A That is correct.
Q If you were to keep your helicopter above the top of this tower you would not hit any utility lines coming off that tower, would you?
A That is correct.
The following remark by the trial judge hearing post-trial motions is telling on whether there was evidence that the towers were “hidden” or “obscured”:
You know, to be perfectly frank with you, you know, you look at it from the common sense point of view, my initial impression of this case is gee whiz, you got these two huge towers, come on, you got to know that there is something there, you know, you got to be extremely careful when you fly in that area, that’s the first thing that hits me.
(emphasis added). Here there is no evidence that the towers could not be seen if the pilot only looked. The majority appears to rely on the plaintiffs expert to create a rule that towers must “catch your attention” or “jump out at you” in order to provide sufficient notice of the wires. No such requirement exists in the regulations or prior case law.
Having found that there is testimony that the towers do not “catch your attention” or “jump out at you,” the majority then focuses on whether the wires are clearly visible. The majority cites the testimony of the plaintiffs expert that the “lines were virtually impossible to see,” and that “Arbeitman was required in his rescue to maneuver his helicopter in close *149proximity to the power lines ...” (emphasis added). Unfortunately, Arbeitman was not required to be anywhere near these power lines to make a rescue. All versions of the events leading to the tragic wire strike begin with a boating accident two miles south of the power lines, almost directly across the river from where Ar-beitman was sitting down for dinner. Ar-bietman takes off, flies about two miles north at an altitude of about 500 feet directly over the power lines in question. A boater sees that Arbeitman is headed in the wrong direction and flags him down. Arbeitman lowers his helicopter to an altitude of about 50 feet above the boat. The boater points him south. Arbeitman is then about 600 feet north of the power lines. He begins to head south, approaching the wires; but in that 600 feet he ascends only 50 feet and strikes the wires approximately 400 feet from the Illinois towers. Because these towers provide ample notice of the wires between them, I do not believe the power lines here create an unreasonable risk of harm to normally operating aircraft.
Finally, I disagree with the majority’s claim that failure to impose a duty here would allow power companies one “free” collision. The case law in other states demonstrates that notice of an unreasonable risk of harm can arise without a prior strike. See Brittain, 486 P.2d at 177 (“the wire and the poles readily blended with the countryside which made them difficult to see from the air”); Shute, 899 F.2d at 1003 (configuration of the five different poles made it “foreseeable that a pilot would be ‘fooled’ by the wire-pole configuration and strike the power lines”); Bailey v. Pennsylvania Electric Co., 409 Pa.Super. 374, 598 A.2d 41, 46 (1991) (utility poles were unpainted).
Here, plaintiffs failed to adduce evidence sufficient to prove that the power lines were unreasonably dangerous. The trial court should have granted the Motion for Judgment notwithstanding the verdict because the defendant had no duty to place marker balls on the wires in question. I believe the question of duty is dispositive. I would reverse.

. An intoxicated pilot is not foreseeable in the same way as an intoxicated driver of a motor vehicle. The roads are lined with restaurants and other establishments that sell liquor. We all know that a significant number of their patrons will drive home after drinking. A certain level of drinking and driving is thus foreseeable. This is decidedly not so in the case of pilots. The law does not tolerate any level of intoxication in pilots. FAA regula*145tions strictly prohibit persons from acting or attempting to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft within 8 hours of consuming any alcoholic beverage. 14 C.F.R. § 91.17. It strikes me as inappropriate to require power companies to take precautions against an intoxicated pilot.

. Wires above 500 feet must be marked. 14 C.F.R. § 77.23(a)(1) (2000). Structures over 200 feet above ground are considered obstacles to air navigation if they are within three nautical miles of an airport whose longest runway is more than 3,200 feet, and may be required to be marked. Id. § 77.23(a)(2) (emphasis added).

. See also, Baine v. Oklahoma Gas and Elec. Co., 850 P.2d 346 (Okla.Ct.App.1992), adopting the same standard.

. Yoffee v. Pennsylvania, 385 Pa. 520, 123 A.2d 636 (1956); El Paso Natural Gas Co. v. United States, 343 F.2d 145 (9th Cir.1965); Bailey v. Pennsylvania Electric Co., 409 Pa.Super. 374, 598 A.2d 41, 46 (1991); Lopez v. Three Rivers Electric Cooperative, Inc., 26 S.W.3d 151, 155 (Mo. banc 2000).

. United States v. Washington, 351 F.2d 913 (9th Cir.1965); Yoffee v. Pennsylvania, 385 Pa. 520, 123 A.2d 636 (1956).

. Yoffee v. Pennsylvania, 385 Pa. 520, 123 A.2d 636 (1956); El Paso Natural Gas Co. v. United States, 343 F.2d 145 (9th Cir.1965); Arizona Public Service Company v. Brittain, 107 Ariz. 278, 486 P.2d 176 (1971); Bailey v. Pennsylvania Electric Co., 409 Pa.Super. 374, 598 A.2d 41, 46 (1991); Lopez v. Three Rivers Electric Cooperative, Inc., 26 S.W.3d 151, 155 (Mo. banc 2000).

. Shute v. Moon Lake Elec. Ass’n, 899 F.2d 999 (10th Cir.1990).