Jefferson County v. Sulzby
Court | Supreme Court of Alabama |
Citation | 468 So.2d 112 |
Parties | JEFFERSON COUNTY, Alabama v. William D. SULZBY. 83-79. |
Decision Date | 29 March 1985 |
Edwin A. Strickland, Co. Atty., and Charles S. Wagner, Asst. Co. Atty., for appellant.
Stephen D. Heninger of Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton, Birmingham, for appellee.
This appeal arose out of a personal injury action brought by plaintiff, William D. Sulzby, against Jefferson County, Alabama. On the evening of June 12, 1978, Sulzby was driving his AMC Jeep vehicle on 23rd Avenue N.W., a two-lane county road in Jefferson County. It had been raining earlier in the evening. The road was extremely dark and hilly in some areas. According to the evidence, Sulzby was using the centerline as a guide. Apparently, after he crested a hill in front of the Sun Valley Church of Christ he became "lost in a sea of asphalt," and he could no longer see in which direction to go. Where the road curved to the left, he veered off the road. Sulzby then turned his vehicle to the left, saw a pole in front of him, and then cut to the left again. The Jeep overturned and Sulzby was thrown from the vehicle.
In his complaint, Sulzby alleged that Jefferson County was responsible for the design and construction of 23rd Avenue N.W. and that its negligence in designing and maintaining the road was the proximate cause of his injuries and damages. The jury returned a verdict in favor of Sulzby and awarded damages in the amount of $75,000.00. After the trial court denied Jefferson County's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict or in the alternative for new trial, the County appealed.
The County argues that this case presents one of first impression regarding the statewide application of the standards established by the Alabama Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (AMUTCD). Jefferson County urges that "in its present posture this case stands for the proposition that juries, [and not qualified engineers], will decide the standard, i.e., DUTY of counties and cities of road design, road marking and road signing for county and city streets."
Specifically, the County raises three issues on appeal:
I.
Whether the jury properly found that the County had notice of the defective roadway and therefore was under a duty to install curve warning signs and edge-of-pavement markings.
II.
Whether statements made by Sulzby at trial constitute an admission of contributory negligence which would bar his recovery.
III.
Whether the jury improperly ignored the testimony of the County's accident reconstruction expert.
Initially, Jefferson County contends that the trial court committed reversible error in denying its motions for directed verdict and judgment notwithstanding the verdict. The County argues that the case should not have been submitted to the jury because (1) there was insufficient evidence that the County had actual or constructive notice of a defective roadway condition and; (2) there was insufficient evidence to prove that the County was under a legal duty to install curve warning signs or edge-of-pavement markings. Claiming that because the Alabama Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (AMUTCD) does not require edge-of-pavement markings or curve warning signs at the accident site, the County contends that it was under no duty, statutory or otherwise, to install such devices. We disagree.
The 1972 AMUTCD, which was in effect on the date of Sulzby's accident, provides in part:
The manual, while providing standards for the statewide application of traffic control devices, is not intended to be a substitute for engineering judgment.
It is undisputed that governmental entities, by virtue of their exclusive authority to maintain and control the roadways; are under a common law duty to keep the streets in repair and in a reasonably safe condition for their intended use. Cf. § 23-1-80, Code of Alabama 1975.
This Court has addressed the issue of a county's duty with regard to the maintenance of public roadways in Cook v. County of St. Clair, 384 So.2d 1 (Ala.1980). This Court held that the plaintiffs could sue St. Clair County and Houston County and the county commissions for negligence for injuries arising as a result of defects in the public roads. This holding was based on Code 1975, § 11-1-2, which provides "Every county is a body corporate, with power to sue or be sued in any court of record."
Since the county can be sued for its negligence, and is exclusively responsible for the maintenance and control of its roadways, its standard of care is to keep its streets in a reasonably safe condition for travel, and to remedy defects in the roadway upon receipt of notice.
In the instant case, the evidence presented justified submission to the jury on the issue of whether the County had notice of a defective roadway condition and thus was under a duty to remedy the alleged defects. Although there was conflicting testimony as to whether the County had in fact breached its duty, there was evidence from which the jury could have reasonably inferred that the County had at least constructive notice of a defective condition of 23rd Avenue N.W. The testimony at trial showed that Jefferson County received an independent traffic engineering survey of this street in November 1977, just seven months prior to Sulzby's accident. The survey, as it relates to a 1.2 mile stretch of this roadway, stated:
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