Pruitt v. Progressive Life Ins. Co.

• Court: Georgia Court of Appeals
• Citation: Pruitt v. Progressive Life Ins. Co., 55 Ga.App. 483, 190 S.E. 435 (Ga. App. 1937)
• Decision Date: 12 March 1937
• Docket Number: 25881.
• Parties: PRUITT v. PROGRESSIVE LIFE INS. CO.

190 S.E. 435

55 Ga.App. 483

PRUITT v. PROGRESSIVE LIFE INS. CO.

No. 25881.

Court of Appeals of Georgia, Second Division

March 12, 1937

Syllabus by the Court.

In an action on a life insurance policy for the accidental death of an insured, it was error for the court to direct a verdict for the insurance company where the evidence did not absolutely demand the finding that the death was produced by suicide, or that it occurred while the insured was under the influence of intoxicating liquors.

Error from Municipal Court of Atlanta; Ralph McClelland, Judge.

Action by Mrs. Ruby M. Pruitt against the Progressive Life Insurance Company. To review a judgment for defendant, plaintiff brings error.

Reversed.

Mrs Ruby M. Pruitt, beneficiary, sued the Progressive Life Insurance Company on a life insurance policy issued to her husband, asking double indemnity on account of his accidental death. The trial judge directed a verdict for the insurance company and plaintiff excepted. The policy provided "that no Accidental Death Benefit will be paid if the death of the insured is the result of self-destruction whether sane or insane, * * * or while under the influence of narcotics or intoxicating liquors." The policy was contestable under Civil Code 1910, § 2500, being less than one year old.

The evidence in the case is as follows: Mrs. Ruby M. Pruitt, the plaintiff, testified: "My name is Ruby M. Pruitt. My husband's name was James Fulton Pruitt. My husband is now dead. He died on April 3d. The cause of his death was that his neck was broken. I was notified of his death a little after 1 o'clock on the 3d day of April. I did not examine him then; they didn't get him out of the water then. I first saw him after that at 10 o'clock the next Saturday night. His neck, back, and throat were broken then. I last saw him before his death at 9:30 Friday morning. He was all right at that time. He was at the hotel. We had a room at the hotel. We were living there. He left the hotel about 9:30. He was in good health and normal then. We were staying at the Johnson Hotel at Porterdale. We had been staying there hardly three months, about two months and three weeks. He left me about 9:30 in the morning. I don't know where he went. He had a habit of hanging around the stores down there. I did not see him after he left. I saw him on Saturday night about 10 o'clock after they had embalmed him and brought him home. Mr. Pruitt and I were working in the cotton mill at Porterdale at the time and living at the hotel. Both of us were working at the mill. He had worked that day. He had worked that morning. He went to work at 6 o'clock and got back at 9:30. He stayed around the house awhile and we talked. I asked him what he was doing at home and he said he got off. Our children were there with us. They were living there, these two twins."

Eddie Lee Digby testified for the defendant: "I have lived here a long time and knew Mr. Pruitt when I saw him. I had known him off and on for two or three years I guess. I have seen him lots of times. I did not know his given name. I don't know whether I saw him on or about April 3, 1936. I remember the day this accident took place. It was between 11 and 12 o'clock. I saw him out there on the bridge. I was walking across the bridge. He was on the bridge when I saw him. He was standing nearly middle-ways of the bridge talking to some girl. I did not know her name. He didn't say anything to me. I seen him jerk off his shoes and coat and jump in the river. I don't think he made any effort to swim out. He was not trying to get out. After he hit the water the water carried him under the bridge. He halloed. He did not hallo for help. He did not make any effort to keep from getting drowned. When he fell he went under the bridge then he came out from under the bridge. I was about twelve or fifteen feet from him when he jumped off the bridge. He was standing up when he jumped off. I don't know whether he had control of himself or not, I guess he did. I did not hear him say anything. I had not seen him before that morning. His body was recovered about 300 yards down the river. It was recovered Saturday morning. He was dead at that time. When I saw him he was dead. I don't know whether he could swim or not. I never had any trouble with him. When he jumped off the current carried him back under the bridge. He came back and went down the river. When he jumped off he halloed. I heard him hallo once. He turned around, it seemed like. I don't know why he turned around. He was looking back towards me. I don't know how many times he halloed. It looked like his body was not moving much. He was in a swift current. When he was trying to swim he was not moving much. His limbs were not moving at all but his body was going on. His head was out of the water. I was standing up on the bridge looking at him. I saw Mr. Lunsford later. Mr. Lunsford was working. He looks after the water race and he looks after the filtering. I didn't notice the negro man who helped Mr. Lunsford. I didn't pay any attention to him. I saw Mr. Pruitt on the bridge and I seen him pull his shoes off. I saw him pull his coat and shoes off.

After he had removed his coat and shoes he jumped in the river as quick as he could get there. I was fifteen or twenty yards from him. John T. Miller was with me. I had not been working that morning. I was going out on the bridge. That was after some hard rains and the river was pretty swift in places as far as I could see. I could not say how long he had been in the water when he went under the bridge. I don't know whether a man could jump in the water and swim out again. The current was strong. He was under the bridge and I could not see him grab at the bridge. I did not see him make any effort to grab hold of the bridge. I did not see him swim up under the bridge, he was going in an opposite direction when he jumped in and the current taken him down stream. If he made an effort to resist the current I don't think he could have done it. He was looking up my way when he halloed. I don't imagine he knows what he was doing. I don't know that the reason he was halloing was because he was trying to get back. I never had any difficulty with any member of his family. Somebody came down here and talked to me about this matter and I signed a paper for him. I think I told him the same thing I am telling you now, I don't know. I am telling what I can remember, my information. I have forgotten things in thirty minutes, I am telling now all I can remember. I could not remember more when I signed the papers than I can now. There were several people on the bridge. I didn't see anybody on the bridge but Mills and that girl and Pruitt. I don't think a man could swim out from there. He jumped from the lower side of the bridge. That is on the left facing the bridge from here. The current runs down that way. He went along with the current and his body was moving down the current. He was not moving himself, he was moving down with the current. I don't know how far he was away when he halloed. I don't know exactly how far the ground is from the bridge. I have talked with Mrs. Gaddy. I don't remember what she said. I didn't see anybody else around there at the time. He climbed up on the railing and stepped over the railing when he left his shoes and coat on the bridge. He didn't tell me what he was doing but I thought he jumped off, that is what I thought about it. The railing is about four feet high. He stepped over the railing. I didn't see anybody push him. The only person there was a woman. There was no one else there besides this girl myself, and Mr. Mills. I could have seen anybody else on the bridge but I was not paying any attention to that. Mr. Lunsford was working below the bridge. I don't know where Mr. Lunsford was at the time this happened. He said he was down there but I don't know whether he was down there. I did not see him down there. He was supposed to be working down there. He run the water wheel. He had to keep logs out of the race. He said he was at the race. A bunch of people came up immediately after this happened. I don't know whether any of them saw him or not. After he jumped in the river he went below the dam. There was a bunch of people came up there after that. I would not swear that Mr. Lunsford was not there. I would not swear that Mr. Lunsford was not looking at him. The insurance man's name is Mr. Dozier. I haven't any policy with the Progressive Life Insurance Company and have never had any. I have no interest in the outcome of this case. There were some bushes where Mr. Lunsford was. I didn't make any effort to rescue him. I would not have jumped in there for my brother. There would not have been any use in it."

By agreement of counsel the deposition of Mr. Mills was omitted from the record, his testimony being the same as that of Digby with the exception that he said he did not hear the deceased hallo.

Tom Leftwich testified for the defendant:

"I was working at the Johnson Hotel on April 3, 1936. A man was living there by the name of Pruitt. I saw him the morning he jumped off the bridge. I waked him up about 5 o'clock, or a few minutes after five. He did not have very much to say to me. I saw him again about 10 o'clock that same day. He did not talk to me then. His wife was up there. He didn't seem like he was drinking. I could not tell it. I saw him leave home about 1 o'clock, or maybe a few minutes after 1 o'clock. He didn't say anything to me but he said he was going to jump off the bridge. He didn't seem like he was drinking. He didn't say a word to me. I saw him go down to the bridge. I did not see him jump off. I asked Mrs. Pruitt if she wanted lunch and she said no, she didn't want lunch. She said to me that Mr.

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