Court Opinion

ID: 9546813
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 17:35:39.702583+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:16:53.088166
License: Public Domain

CROCKETT, Justice.
I concur in affirming the judgment:
There is substantial competent evidence that the defendant in driving his truck westerly down the canyon went over on to its left (south) side of the road and was therefore negligent, proximately causing the collision; and that deceased in driving easterly up the canyon kept his car on his right (south) side of the road and was therefore non-negligent.
Because of the fact that there was evidence introduced both on behalf of the plaintiff and the defendant as to what deceased’s manner of driving was, it may have been unnecessary and therefore improper to give instruction No. 11, set out in the main opinion, as to the presumption of due care. Nevertheless, the instruction was but an application of the elementary rule that the burden of proof of deceased’s contributory negligence was on the defendant. Everyone is presumed to use due care; there is no presumption of negligence. It must be proved. It seems to me that the instruction in question simply told the jury that Mr. Mecham was presumed to be exercising due care, “until the contrary is proven.”1 By other instructions the jury was correctly advised that the defendant had the burden of proving deceased’s contributory negligence by a preponderance of the evidence which term was also properly defined. Accordingly, I agree that the giving of the instruction, even though it may have been unnecessary, did not place any improper burden upon defendant and therefore was not prejudicial error.

. A preferable phrase would be “in the absence of evidence to the contrary.” See BAJI, 143. Also Supl. and Notes.