Garvey v. Atlantic Greyhound Corp.
| Decision Date | 19 November 1947 |
| Docket Number | 453 |
| Citation | 45 S.E.2d 58,228 N.C. 166 |
| Parties | GARVEY v. ATLANTIC GREYHOUND CORPORATION. |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
This was an action to recover damages for a personal injury resulting from a fall from one of defendant's buses, alleged to have been caused by the negligence of the defendant.
It was not controverted that on the occasion alleged, to wit Oct. 16, 1946, about 10:30 p. m., the plaintiff was a passenger on defendant's bus en route from Raleigh to her home near Clayton, N. C.; that the bus was being operated on regular schedule by defendant's driver, and that plaintiff suffered a serious and permanent injury as result of being thrown or falling from the moving bus, though the defendant denied that it was negligent in any manner complained of, or that plaintiff's injury proximately resulted therefrom. Contributory negligence also was pleaded by the defendant.
In support of her allegations of negligence the plaintiff offered evidence tending to show that the circumstances and causes of her injury were substantially these: Plaintiff was a passenger on defendant's bus which left Raleigh about 10:15 p. m. travelling east on Highway 70. The bus was crowded when it left Raleigh with all seats occupied and 12 or 15 persons standing in the aisle. Plaintiff secured a seat next to the aisle and immediately in rear of the bus driver. Shortly before she reached her destination she gave her seat to Mrs Lassiter, whom she knew to be employed on a night shift in a mill, and stood in the aisle at the front, back of the white line, leaning against the front seat on the right and holding the rail which extended over the panel or shield protecting the front of the first seat. She was within 18 inches or two feet of the driver, and to his right and rear. It does not affirmatively appear that any other person was standing in the aisle at this time. The driver had his face turned to his left and was conversing with passengers behind him. The traffic on the Highway was unusually heavy incident to State Fair Week in Raleigh. The bus was behind schedule on account of frequent stopping to discharge and receive passengers, and was being driven at times 60 miles per hour, passing cars, in and out the line of traffic. Going east between Auburn and Clayton, and approaching the locality of the accident, there was a dip in the contour of the road, with an upgrade on the east side, culminating in a sharp curve to the left near the crest of the grade. In traversing this portion of the road and up this grade, the bus passed three cars going in the same direction and then pulled out of line to pass another when, apparently, the driver observed a car approaching in the west bound lane and applied his brakes in order to enable him to get back in line, and then quickly accelerating his speed suddenly lunged forward and turned sharply to the left to follow the curve in the road. The result of these maneuvers was first to throw the plaintiff forward, causing her to lose her hold on the rail and to topple and fall forward on the platform or well which was six or eight inches lower than the aisle. To save herself she caught hold of the rod which connects the lever near the steering wheel with the mechanism for opening and closing the right front door of the bus. Due to the defective condition of this mechanism the door fastening was loosened by the pressure on this rod, and as the bus immediately jerked forward plaintiff was thrown back an endeavored to catch the rail on the panel in front of the right front seat, and then as the bus turned sharply to the left on the curve, the door was thereby caused to open and the plaintiff was thrown out to the ground. Her leg was run over and crushed by the rear wheels of the bus and had to be amputated. According to plaintiff's evidence the driver was oblivious of these happenings and had to be called twice to make him aware that one of his passengers had fallen from the bus. The bus ran 97 steps or yards before it was stopped. There was evidence that the bus in taking this curve (which a witness described as the worst curve between Raleigh and Clayton) was travelling 40 to 50 miles per hour. The defect in the door-securing apparatus of the bus was explained to the jury by a witness acquainted with its construction. This witness, who had been seated on the right front seat of bus with two others testified he had previously noticed the mechanism was loose and would not hold the door against an ordinary jar, and that its condition was such that the driver could have observed it. Another witness had seen a bus door fly open on another occasion, though defendant's driver said that was not on the same bus.
On the other hand, the defendant's evidence tended to show entire absence of negligence on its part in any respect alleged about which testimony was offered, or that there was anything unusual in the operation of the bus. Defendant's evidence tended to show the bus was being driven carefully, was not late, and that immediately prior to the accident the speed was 40 to 45 miles per hour. Defendant's witnesses testified plaintiff was standing up with her purse and a small bundle under her left arm, and that she fell or stumbled forward, and got hold of the door rod and the door came open. The driver said he saw her fall, but, being occupied with operation of the bus, was unable to do anything but pull over carefully to the side of the road and stop; that he went only 25 yards before stopping. He did not know what caused her to fall; that he had not put on brakes or given the bus a jolt or lurch; that he did not recall passing any cars immediately beforehand, and was in the line of traffic; was not talking. He further testified that at the point where plaintiff caught hold of the rod, if it is pulled back hard enough the door will open, and further that there was no defect in the mechanism.
In response to issues submitted the jury returned verdict in...
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