Beckley v. New York Life Ins. Co.
| Decision Date | 21 January 1941 |
| Docket Number | 45385. |
| Citation | 295 N.W. 844,229 Iowa 1007 |
| Parties | BECKLEY v. NEW YORK LIFE INS. CO. |
| Court | Iowa Supreme Court |
Appeal from District Court, Harrison County; H. J. Mantz, Judge.
Action at law upon insurance policy to recover double indemnity for accidental death of assured. From judgment against insurance company it appeals. Opinion states the facts.
Affirmed.
Milchrist & Marshall, of Sioux City, and Welch & Acrea, of Logan, for appellant.
Reed Ramacciotti, Robinson & Hruska, and E. L. Marks, all of Omaha, Neb., and Fred E. Egan, of Missouri Valley, for appellee.
Action at law by Gertrude Beckley, beneficiary in a policy of life insurance on the life of her husband, Ray Beckley, to recover double indemnity for his alleged accidental death. The defendant insurance company paid the face of the policy, but contended it was not liable for double indemnity. The policy recites that the double indemnity benefit is payable " upon due proof that the death of the insured resulted directly and independently of all other causes from bodily injury effected solely through external, violent and accidental means * * *; provided, however, that such Double Indemnity shall not be payable if the Insured's death resulted, directly or indirectly, from (a) self-destruction whether sane or insane; * *."
Defendant's answer admitted insured died while the policy was in effect and denied the other allegations of the petition. It also pleaded " the assured's death resulted from self destruction, to wit: self-inflicted gun shot wounds * * *." Trial to a jury resulted in verdict and judgment for plaintiff and defendant has appealed.
Insured, Ray Beckley, was about 54 years of age and had for a number of years lived in Missouri Valley, Iowa, with his wife and children. He was manager of a grain elevator at Missouri Valley, and operated a 300-acre farm a few miles distant, belonging to his wife, her sister and mother. The year before his death he had lost some money in the wheat market, but it does not appear that he was in financial difficulties. His disposition was happy, friendly and optimistic. His family life was normal and happy. He and his wife visited friends and he was always in good spirits. He, at no time, showed indications of melancholy or despondency.
On Sunday, June 26, 1938, he had breakfast with his family and left for the farm saying that he would return about 4 p. m. At 12:15 to 12:25 p. m. he was seen cutting weeds on the farm. He was next seen at 1:45 p. m. by the witness Hansen, sitting in his car in Loveland, a town on the road from the farm to Missouri Valley. He said he wanted medical help, and Hansen saw bloodstains on his clothing and took him to the office of a doctor in Missouri Valley, where he was hastily examined before being rushed to a hospital. As he lay upon the operating table in the doctor's office, his wife asked him what had happened, and he answered that he went to load the gun.
An examination at the hospital disclosed two bullet wounds in his abdomen, one 5 and one 7 inches below the heart. The bullets had passed through his body and the abdominal cavity was full of blood and clots. These wounds caused peritonitis, from which he died one week later. In the opinion of the doctor, the two wounds were of equal seriousness, either wound was sufficient to cause the peritonitis, and neither wound would have been sufficient to cause death had peritonitis not set in. His general physical condition was very good and he made a normal effort to recover.
The buildings on the farm were unoccupied and Beckley had been alone there. His gun was a 22-caliber forearm action repeating rifle which was kept in the tool shed on the farm, and which he had said he intended to take to his elevator to kill rats.
This rifle was an old model of a type that occasionally discharged without the trigger being pulled. That model tended to catch dirt and cause trouble and for that reason had been discontinued. Beckley's rifle was not clean and the magazine rod was stuck and was moved with difficulty. A defect in the mechanism permitted it to continue firing automatically when the forearm was pushed back and forth and the trigger held down. It had, at one time previously, discharged while Beckley was loading it. In filling the magazine it was necessary to elevate the muzzle in order that the cartridges would drop down into the magazine. In so doing Beckley usually sat down with the rifle butt on the ground in front, and the barrel pointing at his body.
Beckley received two shots in the abdomen. It is appellee's theory that when Beckley was struck in the abdomen by the first accidental shot he slumped forward or doubled up (this is supported by medical testimony) clutching the forearm of the rifle and by his convulsive movements pushing it down three inches and up again thus throwing another cartridge into the chamber which also accidentally discharged. A deputy sheriff, who was a witness for appellant and who had much experience with firearms, testified this could have happened and caused the two abdominal wounds. He also testified to experience in investigating suicides and that suicides usually shoot themselves in the head or chest. When he investigated this case he checked to see if there were any nails, projections or sticks that could have been used to pull the trigger and found none.
There was blood on the floor of the shed and a trail of blood leading into and through the house to and upon a cot where Beckley had apparently lain and attempted to use a (disconnected) telephone before he drove to Loveland, where Hansen found him. Beckley's notebook was found open in the tool shed and written therein, in an almost illegible scrawl, was the following: " Was go to load and ax off 1 2 1:30 such pain have to finish it."
Beckley was educated and was an active business man who could write and spell correctly. The writing, spelling and language evidence his mental and physical condition at the time. Appellant would read the note-" I went to load the gun and it accidentally went off at 12 o'clock 1:30 such pain have to finish it." Appellant states this conclusively established that Beckley intentionally fired the second shot into his abdomen. The doctor testified it was possible that the loss of blood would have caused Beckley to become dizzy and faint, that blood clots would temporarily stop the hemorrhage and he might revive temporarily and the bleeding might start again and he might again become faint.
Appellee contends Beckley was shot twice at the same time (after 12:25) and interprets the note-" Was go to load and ax off one two" -referring to the two shots. Her counsel say that Beckley did not shoot himself with a third shot at 1:30 as he may have intended, but instead tried to get help by telephone and then drove to Loveland. The time element lends some support to this theory because Beckley was seen working at 12:15 or 12:25 and could not have...
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