Hardeman Cnty. v. McIntyre

• Decision Date: 27 March 2013
• Citation: 420 S.W.3d 742
• Court: Tennessee Court of Appeals
• Parties: HARDEMAN COUNTY v. Judy I. McINTYRE, et al.

420 S.W.3d 742

HARDEMAN COUNTY

v.Judy I. McINTYRE, et al.

Court of Appeals of Tennessee,

Western Section, at Jackson.

Feb. 20, 2013 Session.

March 27, 2013.

Application for Permission to Appeal

Denied by Supreme Court

Oct. 31, 2013.

James I. Pentecost and Melissa K. Van Pelt, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellants, Hardeman County, Tennessee and Hardeman County Emergency Medical Services.

David A. Stowers and Stephen L. Hale, Bolivar, Tennessee, for the appellees, Judy McIntyre and Billy McIntyre.

Jay G. Bush, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellee, Judy I. McIntyre.

OPINION

J. STEVEN STAFFORD, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ALAN E. HIGHERS, P.J., W.S., and HOLLY M. KIRBY, J., joined.

This case concerns the liability for a collision involving a vehicle operated by one of the appellees and an ambulance operated by the appellant county. After a bench trial, the trial court awarded damages to appellee driver against the appellant. After a thorough review of the record, we reverse and remand.

I. Background

On August 14, 2007, Appellant Hardeman County Emergency Medical Services (“Ambulance Service”) employees Derrick Love and Jennifer Fortune were involved in an automobile accident while responding to an emergency call in Whiteville, Tennessee. The Ambulance Service is operated by Appellant Hardeman County, Tennessee (“Hardeman County,” and together with Ambulance Service, “Appellants”).

At the time of the accident, the ambulance was traveling westbound on two-lane Tate Road, through several curves, approaching the turn off to Jones Road. There is no stoplight or stop sign on Tate Road at the turn off to Jones Road. The ambulance decelerated upon seeing at least two cars stopped on Tate Road preparing to turn left onto Jones Road. After the first car, a pickup truck, turned left, the ambulance proceeded to cross the double yellow line on Tate Road and merged into the left lane, in an attempt to go around the car that remained stopped on Tate Road. As the ambulance was passing the stopped car, a Town Car, the car's driver, Appellee Judy I. McIntyre, attempted to turn left onto Jones Street, colliding with the ambulance. Both the ambulance personnel and Ms. McIntyre sustained injuries in the collision.

On June 5, 2008, Hardeman County filed a complaint against Ms. McIntyre for damages arising from the collision, including property damage and medical expenses for the ambulance personnel that were incurred by Hardeman County. On August 6, 2008, Ms. McIntyre and her husband filed a separate complaint for damages against Hardeman County, ambulance driver Derrick Love, and the Ambulance Service. The two cases were consolidated by agreement of the parties on September 29, 2011.

A bench trial was held on May 15, 2012. The parties stipulated to the medical expenses of both parties and the property damage to Hardeman County. The first witness to testify was Annette Anderson. Ms. Anderson was driving the pickup truck in front of Ms. McIntyre's car that turned left onto Jones Road prior to the collision. Ms. Anderson testified that the accident occurred during daylight and there were no adverse conditions on the road, such as rain or snow. She further testified that the ambulance had engaged both its emergency lights and siren throughout the events at issue in this case, and that she clearly heard and saw the ambulance prior to the collision. According to Ms. Anderson, she proceeded to turn onto Jones Road because the ambulance was far enough away at that time that she could safely make the turn. Ms. Anderson testified that, when she observed the ambulance, it was going “fast” and “quick” down Tate Road westbound toward the turn off at Jones Road. However, Ms. Anderson further testified that, after she turned onto Jones Road, she did not observe the ambulance again and admitted that she had no “knowledge of how fast the ambulance was going.” Instead, she testified that shortly after turning on Jones Road, she heard the sound of a collision, pulled her car to the side of the road, exited the car and saw that the Town Car and the ambulance had collided.

Jennifer Fortune, an emergency medical technician with the Ambulance Service also testified as to the circumstances surrounding the collision. Prior to the collision, the ambulance was traveling down Jones Road in response to an emergency call regarding a possible drug overdose in Whiteville, Tennessee. Ms. Fortune testified that Tate Road contains several curves, but that the portion of the road immediately proceeding the turn off to Jones Road is a “straight away.” According to Mr. Fortune,who was a passenger in the ambulance, the ambulance decelerated upon approaching the turn off to Jones Road until the pickup truck turned, then proceeded to clear the intersection. As the ambulance was going through the intersection, however, the Town Car turned left, colliding with the ambulance and pushing it into a fire hydrant. Ms. Fortune testified that the ambulance's lights and siren were engaged the entire time and that the Town Car did not have a blinker on indicating its intent to turn left. Ms. Fortune described the ambulance's movement at the turn off, stating that it “approached [the turn off] still using lights, and sirens are still running, we yielded, [and] proceeded around [Ms. McIntyre's Town Car] with caution.” According to Ms. Fortune, when the driver of the ambulance became aware that Ms. McIntyre was proceeding to turn left, he attempted to accelerate to prevent a collision. However, his attempt was unsuccessful. Ms. Fortune further testified that she was unsure of the exact rate of speed the ambulance was traveling down Tate Road, but that she was sure that the ambulance was not exceeding fifteen miles per hour over the posted speed limit, which is the Ambulance Service's internal policy limit for speed in an emergency situation. Ms. Fortune was also unsure of the exact speed limit on Tate Road where the accident occurred, but testified that she believed the speed limit to be thirty-five miles per hour. Ms. Fortune further testified that the ambulance was not required by internal policy to stop at the turn off to Jones Road because the turn off was not a true intersection.

Ms. McIntyre testified, in contrast, that she is usually in the habit of using her turn signal at the turn off to Jones Road and that she travels this same path every day that she goes into work. Ms. McIntyre believed that she had used her blinker on the day of the collision as was her usual habit. Ms. McIntyre testified that prior to the collision, she heard the ambulance siren, but after looking in all directions, was unable to locate the ambulance. According to Ms. McIntyre, she could also no longer hear the siren and she believed that the ambulance personnel had “turned [the siren] off.” Ms. McIntyre admitted, however, that she was listening to the radio at the time and did not turn the radio down despite hearing the siren. Because she could neither hear nor see the ambulance approaching, Ms. McIntyre proceeded to execute a left-hand turn onto Jones Road, resulting in the collision. According to Ms. McIntyre, she never saw the ambulance and was, therefore, unable to speculate as to the ambulance's speed. Ms. McIntyre was taken by another ambulance to a hospital. She testified, over objection, that while she was in the emergency room, she overheard the ambulance driver admit to a police officer that he was driving approximately eighty miles per hour prior to the collision. Ms. McIntyre also alleged that the ambulance driver stated that both his lights and siren were on and that he believed that Ms. McIntyre had yielded to the ambulance prior to attempting to pass her Town Car. The police officer allegedly responded that he would falsify the police report to state that the ambulance was only traveling forty miles per hour. Ms. McIntyre admitted, however, that she never saw the alleged speakers at the hospital, that she had never met either the ambulance driver or the police officer, that she was not familiar with either speaker's voice, and that the police report at issue did not contain a speed at which the ambulance was traveling. Although the ambulance driver was named as a defendant in the complaint, it appears from the record that he was never served with process, nor did he participate in any way in the proceedings.Neither the ambulance driver nor the police officer was called to testify.

Several photographs depicting the damage to Ms. McIntyre's car were also admitted into evidence without objection. The photographs show extensive damage to the driver's side and front of Ms. McIntyre's car. Ms. McIntyre further testified that she suffered various injuries, including a broken collar bone, four broken ribs, internal bruising, and an ankle injury as a result of the crash. According to Ms. McIntyre, although she healed from the majority of her injuries in approximately four months, she had lingering pain for a year after the accident.

Finally, Lela Ashworth, Ms. McIntyre's sister, testified about a conversation she had with Ms. Fortune at the hospital after the accident. According to Ms. Ashworth, she was called to the hospital due to her sister's accident. At the hospital, Ms. Ashworth spoke with Ms. Fortune, who allegedly informed Ms. Ashworth that the ambulance had been traveling at eighty miles per hour prior to the collision, but “slowed down” before the accident occurred. Ms. Ashworth testified, however, that Ms. Fortune did not state what speed the ambulance was going at the time of the collision. In her previous testimony, however, Ms. Fortune denied that she told anyone that the ambulance was traveling eighty miles per hour. In addition, Ms. Fortune testified that she never heard Mr. Love or any one else state that the ambulance was going eighty miles per hour.

At the conclusion of the evidence, the trial court made oral findings of fact and conclusions...