Syllabus
by the Court.
Upon an
issue of suicide, self-destruction is never presumed.
In an
action upon a life insurance policy, where the defense is the
suicide of the insured, the burden of establishing
self-destruction by a preponderance of the evidence is upon
the insurer.
Where
the minds of reasonable men may differ as to the legal
sufficiency of the evidence, the jury, and not the court
must determine the issue.
Commissioners'
Opinion, Division No. 3. Error from District Court, Muskogee
County; R. C. Allen, Judge.
Action
by R. F. Spaulding, administrator of the estate of Lee
Spaulding, deceased, against the Penn Mutual Life Insurance
Company. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant brings error.
Affirmed.
BLEAKMORE
C.
This
case, presenting error from the district court of Muskogee
county, was brought on the 19th day of April, 1912, by the
defendant in error, administrator of the estate of Lee
Spaulding, as plaintiff, against the plaintiff in error as
defendant, to recover upon a policy of insurance on the life
of Lee Spaulding, payable in the event of his death to his
wife, Maud Spaulding, should she survive him, otherwise, to
his executors, administrators, or assigns. The parties will
hereafter be referred to as they appeared in the trial court.
The
policy in suit, which was issued December 7, 1910, contains
the following provisions:
"In consideration of the application of this policy
which is made a part hereof, the Penn Mutual Life Insurance
Company insures the life of Lee Spaulding (the insured), near
Muskogee, county of Muskogee, state of Oklahoma, in the sum
of two thousand dollars, for the period of ten years from
December 7th, 1910, and promises to pay at its home office
in the city of Philadelphia, unto Maud Spaulding, his wife,
if she survive him, otherwise to his executors,
administrators or assigns, the said sum insured, upon receipt
of due proof of the death of the insured, during the
continuance in force of this policy, upon the following
conditions, namely." Case-made, 7.
"This policy and the application therefor, a copy of
which is attached hereto, constituting the entire contract
between the parties, shall be incontestable after one year
from its date of issue, except for nonpayment of premiums;
but in case of suicide, whether sane or insane, within one
year from the date of this policy, the liability of the
company shall be limited to the amount of the premium paid
thereon." Case-made, 10.
It is
alleged in the petition that Lee Spaulding died on June 19,
1911, and that Maud Spaulding did not survive him. The answer
contains a general denial, and the allegation that the death
of the insured was by suicide. Defendant offered to confess
judgment for the amount of the premium paid and interest.
There was judgment for the full amount of the policy.
Defendant
assigns the following as error:
"I. The court erred in refusing the defendant's
specially requested instruction No. 1, directing the jury to
return a verdict in its favor.
II. The court erred in charging the jury as follows: '(2)
It is manifest that self-destruction cannot be presumed. So
strong is the instinctive love of life in the human breast,
and so uniform the efforts of men to preserve their
existence, suicide cannot be presumed. The plaintiff is
therefore entitled to recover, unless the defendant has, by
competent evidence, overcome this presumption and satisfied
the jury, by a preponderance of evidence, that the injuries
which caused the death of the insured were intentional on his
part.'
III. The court erred in charging the jury as follows:
'(3) If you find from the evidence
that the body of the deceased was found under such
circumstances that death may have resulted from negligence,
accident, murder, or suicide, the presumption is against
suicide as contrary to the general conduct of mankind, a
gross moral turpitude not to be presumed in a sane man.'
IV. The court erred in charging the jury as follows: '(4)
The court instructs the jury that in determining the issue as
to whether or not the deceased, Lee Spaulding, committed
suicide, you must take into consideration the condition of
the deceased in life, that is, his domestic and social
relations, his financial means or circumstances, his health
and the state of his mind, as such matters are disclosed by
the evidence introduced herein.'
V. The court erred in charging the jury as follows: '(5)
You are further instructed, that the law presumes against
self-destruction, and if, from the evidence adduced in this
case, the death of said Lee Spaulding may be explained on any
theory which excludes that of suicide, it is your duty to
adopt such other theory and reject that of suicide. And if
you are unable to determine, from the evidence adduced,
whether said Lee Spaulding did or did not commit suicide, the
presumption of law that he did not weighs in favor of the
plaintiff herein, and in such event you must find that said
Lee Spaulding did not meet his death by
self-destruction.'
VI. The court erred in charging the jury as follows: '(2)
It is manifest that self-destruction cannot be presumed. So
strong is the instinctive love of life in the human breast,
and so uniform the efforts of men to preserve their
existence, suicide cannot be presumed. The plaintiff is
therefore entitled to recover, unless the defendant has, by
competent evidence, overcome this presumption and satisfied
the jury, by a preponderance of evidence, that the injuries
which caused the death of the insured were intentional on his
part. (3) If you find from the evidence that the body of the
deceased was found under such circumstances that death may
have resulted from negligence, accident, murder, or suicide,
the presumption is against suicide as contrary to the general
conduct of mankind, a gross moral turpitude not to be
presumed in a sane man. (4) The court instructs the jury that
in determining the issue as to whether or not the deceased,
Lee Spaulding, committed suicide, you must take into
consideration the condition of the deceased in life, that is,
his domestic and social relations, his financial means or
circumstances, his health and the state of his mind, as such
matters are disclosed by the evidence introduced herein. (5)
You are further instructed that the law presumes against
self-destruction, and if, from the evidence adduced in this
case, the death of said Lee Spaulding may be explained on any
theory which excludes that of suicide, it is your duty to
adopt such other theory and reject that of suicide. And if
you are unable to determine, from the evidence adduced,
whether said Lee Spaulding did or did not commit suicide, the
presumption of law that he did not weighs in favor of the
plaintiff herein, and in such event you must find that said
Lee Spaulding did not meet his death by
self-destruction.'
VII. The court erred in overruling the motion of plaintiff in
error for a new trial for that said motion should have been
granted because of the errors mentioned in the preceding
specifications of error and pointed out in said motion.
VIII. The court erred in overruling the motion of the
plaintiff in error for a new trial for that said motion
should have been granted because the verdict and judgment was
not sustained by sufficient evidence, but was contrary to the
great preponderance of the evidence."
The
insured died within one year from the date of the policy. If
his death was by suicide the liability of defendant was
limited to the amount of the premium paid (for which it
offered to confess judgment); if the death was from any other
cause the liability was the full amount of the policy.
Defendant
pleaded suicide, and on it rested the burden of proving such
to be the fact. From the evidence it appears that at the time
of his death, Lee Spaulding about 26 years of age, resided on
a farm some four miles from Muskogee, Okl., with his wife
Maud, and two infants of 1 and 3 years. The wife was again
enceinte. Although it appears that some three years before
there had been differences and misunderstandings between
them, and after his death his father stated that they had
contemplated separating, yet in their then domestic relations
there was nothing apparently unusual or inharmonious; his
social intercourse was pleasant; he was not shown to have had
any personal enemies; and was not in financial difficulties.
His was just the common life of the ordinary young man of his
class. He had arranged to entertain a number of friends and
neighbors at his home with an ice cream supper or festival on
the night of June 19, 1912. About 1 o'clock on that day
he assisted his younger brother, who was going to Muskogee to
procure the ice cream, to hitch his team to a wagon. This was
the last time he was seen alive by any witness. Shortly
before sundown a friend, who resided some four miles distant,
and who had been invited to the entertainment and to spend
the night at the home of insured, arrived at his house. The
three year old child was on the porch just without the door,
which was closed by a screen only. Within the room about two
feet from the door lay the dead body of Maud Spaulding. She
had been shot twice, once through the head and once through
the body. The wounds were powder burned, and where the ball
entered the body a hole some four inches in diameter was
burned in her clothing. On a pallet near the mother's
corpse sat the younger child. Some four feet from the body of
the wife was...
