Enriquez v. Idaho Power Co.
| Decision Date | 02 March 2012 |
| Docket Number | No. 37812.,37812. |
| Citation | 272 P.3d 534,152 Idaho 562 |
| Court | Idaho Supreme Court |
| Parties | Isabel ENRIQUEZ, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. IDAHO POWER COMPANY, Defendant–Respondent. |
Kent D. Jensen Law Office, Burley, for appellant. Kent D. Jensen argued.
Brassey, Wetherell & Crawford, Boise, for respondent. J. Nick Crawford argued.
This appeal arises from a negligence action brought by Isabel Enriquez (Enriquez) against Idaho Power Company (Idaho Power). Enriquez received severe electrical burns when he encountered an aluminum sprinkler pipe that had become energized by a high-voltage power line. He claimed that after the power line broke and electrified the pipe, Idaho Power's safety equipment did not shut off the current to the downed line, allowing him to be shocked when he approached the pipe to move it.
The case went to trial, and Enriquez argued that Idaho Power was negligent under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. At the close of Enriquez's case in chief, Idaho Power moved for a directed verdict. The district court determined that res ipsa loquitur did not apply to the facts of this case and granted the motion. On appeal, Enriquez argues that the district court erred in holding that res ipsa loquitur did not apply and the directed verdict was therefore improper. We affirm.
In 2007, Enriquez received an electrical shock when he approached an aluminum sprinkler pipe that had become charged by a downed power line. He was preparing a field for harvest when he saw the sprinkler pipe on the ground in front of the tractor he was driving. The pipe was partially covered by vegetation and was located directly under high-voltage power lines that powered the field's irrigation system. Enriquez testified that when he approached the pipe to move it out of the way of the tractor, he was shocked and lost consciousness. He stated that he did not lift the pipe up into the line and that he intended to drag the pipe to the side.
Upon regaining consciousness, Enriquez returned to the tractor and used the radio to inform his supervisor of the accident. He testified that he noticed the broken power line only after he regained consciousness and was back in the tractor. When the supervisor arrived, Enriquez warned him not to approach the tractor. The supervisor saw the downed line, and both men waited for Idaho Power employees to secure and repair the broken power line.
Enriquez sued Idaho Power for his injuries, alleging negligence, and requested a jury instruction on res ipsa loquitur. Idaho Power objected to the proposed jury instruction, arguing that Enriquez could not meet the elements required for its application. After the close of Enriquez's case, Idaho Power moved for a directed verdict, contending that res ipsa loquitur was inapplicable and, absent application of the doctrine, Enriquez had failed to prove negligence by Idaho Power. The district court heard argument and found that res ipsa loquitur did not apply and Enriquez had failed to prove that Idaho Power was negligent. Judgment was entered against Enriquez, and he timely appealed Enriquez asks this Court to reverse the district court's grant of directed verdict and remand for a new trial.
When reviewing a decision to grant or deny a motion for a directed verdict, this Court applies the same standard the trial court applied when originally ruling on the motion. Weinstein v. Prudential Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 149 Idaho 299, 315, 233 P.3d 1221, 1237 (2010) (citation omitted). This Court exercises free review and does not defer to the findings of the trial court. Todd v. Sullivan Constr. LLC, 146 Idaho 118, 124, 191 P.3d 196, 202 (2008). In conducting this review, "we determine whether there was sufficient evidence to justify submitting the claim to the jury, viewing as true all adverse evidence and drawing every legitimate inference in favor of the party opposing the motion for a directed verdict." Id. This test "does not require the evidence be uncontradicted," but only that it "be of sufficient quantity and probative value that reasonable minds could conclude that a verdict in favor of the party against whom the motion is made is proper." Waterman v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co., 146 Idaho 667, 672, 201 P.3d 640, 645 (2009). "[W]here a non-moving party produces sufficient evidence from which reasonable minds could find in its favor, a motion for directed verdict should be denied." Lawton v. City of Pocatello, 126 Idaho 454, 458, 886 P.2d 330, 334 (1994) (citation omitted). This Court exercises free review over questions of law. Armstrong v. Farmers Ins. Co. of Idaho, 147 Idaho 67, 69, 205 P.3d 1203, 1205 (2009).
Before discussing application of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur, it is important to identify the theory of negligence Enriquez advanced to the trial court when it considered Idaho Power's motion for directed verdict. We do so because, on appeal, Enriquez appears to assert that Idaho Power was negligent in two respects: (1) by permitting the power line to fall; and (2) by failing to have adequate safety measures in place to prevent injuries from the fallen power line. However, it is clear that the first theory expressed on this appeal was not advanced at trial. Indeed, Enriquez's expert, Lars Kamm (Kamm), assumed that outside forces were responsible for the line's failure, testifying on direct examination: "Remember we have a loose wire hanging down which has just been broken by some mechanical effect up in the air, quite possibly by winds shaking it back and forth like the winds around here, and the broken end fell down...." On cross-examination, Kamm reiterated his belief that the line may have broken due to weather.
Kamm did not advance an opinion regarding Idaho Power's alleged negligence.1 Rather, his testimony was directed to the issue of how Enriquez came to be injured. This testimony apparently anticipated that Idaho Power's theory would be that Enriquez was shocked by lifting the irrigation pipe in such a fashion as to contact the wire overhead, rather than being injured in the manner which he described.
Kamm testified that if Enriquez had been holding the pipe when it came into contact with the energized power line, the high voltage carried by the line would have certainly killed him. Kamm testified as to the amount of current that human beings can survive, making reference to the amount of current that would trigger a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) installed in a home. Kamm explained that since Enriquez survived, a mechanism of injury other than the pipe contacting the energized line must have been involved. Kamm opined that the power line fell into a network of plants around the pipe, creating a high impedance fault.2
Kamm summarized this opinion, stating: "In this case, to essentially cut to the chase, Mr. Enriquez caught a bad shock because a high-impedance fault did not cause Idaho Power to turn off the power which generated the fault." Kamm opined that at some point after Enriquez was shocked, the power line came into direct contact with the pipe, triggering a form of circuit breaker referred to as a recloser, thus de-energizing the line.
In response to Idaho Power's motion for directed verdict, Enriquez's attorney advanced only the second theory of negligence identified in this appeal. He took the position that Idaho Power's safety equipment did not respond to the high-impedance fault resulting from the downed power line, permitting it to remain energized and shock Enriquez, stating: "[O]ur theory is the line was broken, it created a high-impedance-fault situation which did not trip the breakers for Idaho Power."
As this Court has long held that it will not consider issues raised for the first time on appeal and Enriquez did not advance a theory of negligence based upon line failure before the district court, we will address only the second theory of negligence. KEB Enterprises, L.P. v. Smedley, 140 Idaho 746, 752, 101 P.3d 690, 696 (2004) (citing Row v. State, 135 Idaho 573, 580, 21 P.3d 895, 902 (2001) ).
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur is a method of establishing negligence by means of "inferences, rather than direct proof." Christensen v. Potratz, 100 Idaho 352, 355, 597 P.2d 595, 598 (1979). When applicable, it "creates an inference of the breach of the duty imposed and replaces direct evidence with a permissive inference of negligence." Id. (citations omitted). Two elements must exist before res ipsa loquitur applies in a particular case: (1) "the agency or instrumentality causing the injury must be under the exclusive control and management of the defendant," and (2) "the circumstances must be such that common knowledge and experience would justify the inference that the accident would not have happened in the absence of negligence." Id. (citations omitted). Application of the doctrine is "limited to those cases which are within the common knowledge and experience of the average layperson." Kolln v. St. Luke's Reg'l Med. Ctr., 130 Idaho 323, 334, 940 P.2d 1142, 1153 (1997).
In addition to these two requirements, this Court has held that "[i]t is also necessary that the cause of the injury point[s] to the defendant's negligence." S.H. Kress & Co. v. Godman, 95 Idaho 614, 617, 515 P.2d 561, 564 (1973) (citations omitted). In other words, "[t]he mere happening of an accident does not dispense with the requirement that the injured party must make some showing that the defendant against whom relief is sought was in some manner negligent, where there are other probable causes of the injury." Christensen, 100 Idaho at 355, 597 P.2d at 598. Therefore, to proceed under res ipsa loquitur, a plaintiff must demonstrate that the instrumentality which caused his injury was under the exclusive control and management of the defendant and that the circumstances would permit an average layperson to infer,...
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