Reinbott v. Tidwell

• Decision Date: 18 May 2006
• Docket Number: No. 26992.,26992.
• Parties: Curtis S. REINBOTT and Peggy Reinbott, Plaintiffs-Respondents, v. Hubert C. TIDWELL, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

191 S.W.3d 102

Curtis S. REINBOTT and Peggy Reinbott, Plaintiffs-Respondents, v. Hubert C. TIDWELL, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 26992.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, Division One.

May 18, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Joy J. Ferguson, Hackworth, Hackworth & Ferguson, L.C., Piedmont, MO, for Appellant.

Jerry M. Merrell and Kristi J. Booker, Spain, Merrell & Miller, L.L.C., Poplar Bluff, MO, for Respondent.

GARY W. LYNCH, Judge.

The Circuit Court of Ripley County entered judgment in favor of Respondents Curtis S. Reinbott and Peggy Reinbott ("Reinbotts") and against Appellant Hubert C. Tidwell ("Tidwell"), declaring the existence of and enjoining interference with a prescriptive easement for ingress and egress to Reinbotts' property across Tidwell's property. The trial court additionally entered a monetary judgment in favor of Tidwell and against Reinbotts for damages due to Reinbotts' trespass on Tidwell's property outside of the prescriptive easement. Tidwell appeals, claiming that the injunctive relief granted against him by the trial court exceeds the scope of the declared prescriptive easement and that the trial court failed to take into account such excess in entering the damage judgment in his favor. We agree.

1) Factual and Procedural Background

Roger Reinbott, the uncle of Respondent Curtis Reinbott, acquired a 185-acre tract of land ("Reinbott Property") west of Highway K in Ripley County, Missouri, in 1972. Roger never resided on this property, but he and his family, including the Reinbotts, used the land regularly for hunting and camping. From 1976 until 1982 or 1983, Roger rented the land to James Engelken to pasture cattle. The Reinbotts acquired this property from Roger in 1999. Since 1972, Roger, James Engelken and the Reinbotts have gained ingress and egress to this property via the Highway K Bridge, previously known as Greenville Ford. The road ("Road") to access the Reinbott Property runs from the Highway K Bridge west along the north prong of the Little Black River. The Road is graveled and is about fifteen feet wide. The Road was in the same location and same condition in 1972 as it appears today, except for the addition of some gravel and the two bridges discussed later in this opinion.

In 1975 or 1976, Kenneth and Sharlie Knight acquired ownership of a 128-acre tract of land ("Tidwell Property") that is also situated west of Highway K and northwest of and adjacent to the Reinbott Property. Tidwell obtained ownership of a one-half interest in this property in 1999 when Kenneth and Sharlie Knight (Tidwell's sister) divorced. In August of 2001, Sharlie Knight deeded her remaining interest in the land over to Tidwell.

The North Prong of the Little Black River serves as a boundary line between the Reinbott Property and the Tidwell Property. Tidwell's chain of title indicates that his property line extends to the middle of the Little Black River. The Reinbotts' chain of title indicates that they own the property to the west of the Little Black River. The Road runs generally east and west from the Highway K Bridge, going across the southern part of the Tidwell Property to the western bank of the North Prong of Little Black River, connecting to the Reinbott Property.

Before year 2000, traversing the Road from the Highway K Bridge to the Reinbott Property required fording a creek located essentially below the Highway K Bridge, driving across the southwest corner of the Tidwell Property and then fording the North Prong of the Little Black River.

During 2000, the Reinbotts decided to build a home by remodeling the barn on their property. They also decided to improve the access to their property via the Road by building a low water slab ("Creek Bridge")¹ over the creek that is on the state right-of-way for Highway K, near the Highway K Bridge, and by building a bridge ("River Bridge") over the north prong of the Little Black River which serves as the boundary between the Tidwell Property and the Reinbott Property.

In preparation for the construction of the River Bridge, the Reinbotts applied for and received a permit from the Corps of Engineers. This permit was conditioned upon the Reinbotts maintaining the bridge and using all reasonable efforts to help control erosion. In addition, they hired a bulldozer operator to cut down some trees and clear out an area to store bridge-building materials on the Tidwell Property near the bridge location. Brown's Nursery and Landscaping Service estimated it would cost $3,496.00 to restore the Tidwell Property to its condition before these trees were bulldozed out.

The Reinbotts commenced construction of the River Bridge in August of 2000. This construction consisted of laying six metal culverts side by side, perpendicular to the Road and parallel with the channel of the river, with approximately three culverts lying on each side of the center line of the channel. Each culvert is twenty feet long and, from the pictures admitted into evidence, appears to be approximately twenty-four inches in diameter. Concrete was then poured around and over the top of the culverts. The concrete is approximately eighteen feet wide at the base of the bridge and beveled upward to provide a roadway width of fourteen feet on the top of the bridge.

In the spring of 2001, the Reinbotts completed construction of the River Bridge by adding a concrete approach to each end of the bridge, both which are approximately the width of the roadway part of the bridge and extended out from each end of the bridge for about twenty feet. Following subsequent flooding and the resulting erosion, the Reinbotts restructured the bridge in 2002, by putting in aprons on each side of the approaches on both ends of the bridge. The concrete aprons fan out from the width of the bridge approaches on both sides of the river. The approach and aprons on Tidwell's side of the bridge combined are forty-eight feet wide. The aprons are necessary to prevent erosion.

In June of 2003, Tidwell blocked access to the Road. The Reinbotts responded by filing a four-count petition in the Circuit Court of Ripley County against Tidwell. Count I sought a declaration of an easement by necessity, Count II sought a declaration of a fifteen-feet-wide prescriptive easement for ingress and egress over the Road, Count III sought a temporary and permanent injunction prohibiting Tidwell from interfering with the Reinbotts' use of the Road, and Count IV sought monetary damages due to Tidwell's interference with their use of the Road. Tidwell counter-claimed, seeking in Count 1 to quiet his title to the Road and seeking in Count 2 monetary damages against the Reinbotts for their trespass upon his property.

Following a trial to the court, a judgment ("Judgment") was entered denying the Reinbotts any relief on Counts I (Easement by necessity) and IV (Damages) of their petition, granting the Reinbotts relief on Counts II (Prescriptive easement) and III (Injunction)² of their petition, denying Tidwell any relief on Count 1 (Quiet title) of his counter-claim, and granting Tidwell actual damages of $5,000.00 against the Reinbotts on Count 2 (Trespass) of his counter-claim.

The Judgment grants the Reinbotts a prescriptive easement ("Easement") fifteen feet in width³ over the Road as a "perpetual non-exclusive easement for automobile and pedestrian ingress and egress to and from" the Reinbott Property. The Judgment then provides:

[T]he Court permanently enjoins [Tidwell] from interfering with [Reinbotts'] right of ingress and egress along and upon the aforesaid roadway easement. It is further ordered that [Reinbotts] and [Tidwell] may erect and maintain a locked gate across said easement, provided that any such party electing to do so shall maintain such gate and lock in good repair and working order and provide the other party with a key to such lock. [Reinbotts] are further ordered to permanently maintain the existing two (2) bridges erected by [Reinbotts] across the waterways intersecting said road easement in such a manner as to prevent erosion to defendant's property. (Emphasis added).

The Judgment awarded Tidwell $5,000.00 for actual damages against the Reinbotts, but denied Tidwell's prayer for punitive damages and for attorney fees.

Tidwell appeals the Judgment.

2) Standard of Review

In this court-tried equity case, our review is controlled by Rule 84.13(d)⁴ and the precepts of Murphy v. Carron, 536 S.W.2d 30, 32 (Mo. banc 1976). Schubert v. Trailmobile Trailer, L.L.C., 111 S.W.3d 897, 899 (Mo.App.2003). "The judgment will be affirmed unless there is no substantial evidence to support it, or unless it is against the weight of the evidence, or unless it erroneously declares or applies the law." Pelligreen v. Wood, 111 S.W.3d 446, 450 (Mo.App.2003).

"Under Rule 84.13(d), we defer to the trial court's opportunity to judge the credibility of witnesses." Smith v. AF & L Ins. Co., 147 S.W.3d 767, 773 (Mo.App. 2004). "Although we generally defer to the trial court's findings of fact, we review conclusions of law without deference to the trial court." Id. "We independently evaluate whether the trial court properly declared or applied the law to the facts presented." Ridgway v. TTnT Dev. Corp., 126 S.W.3d 807, 813 (Mo.App.2004).

3) Tidwell's Claims of Trial Court Error

Tidwell does not challenge the portion of the Judgment granting the Reinbotts the Easement. All five of Tidwell's points on appeal challenge the Judgment as it relates to the River Bridge. Point I contends that the inclusion of the entirety of the River Bridge in the injunction was error, in that, as a whole, it exceeds the scope of the Easement. Points II, IV and V contend that the trial court misapplied the law by including in the injunction those parts of the River Bridge located on the Tidwell Property outside of the Easement. Point III contends that the trial court erred by not assessing trespass damages necessary for Tidwell to remove...