State ex rel. Kansas City Pub. Serv. Co. v. Shain
Citation | 124 S.W.2d 1097 |
Decision Date | 21 February 1939 |
Docket Number | No. 34824.,34824. |
Parties | STATE OF MISSOURI at the relation of KANSAS CITY PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY, a Corporation, Relator, v. HOPKINS B. SHAIN, EWING C. BLAND and ROBERT M. REYNOLDS, Judges of the Kansas City Court of Appeals. |
Court | Missouri Supreme Court |
Cowgill & Popham, John F. Cook and Louis Wagner for respondents.
(1) The ruling of the Kansas City Court of Appeals to the effect that plaintiff's Instruction 1, which told the jury that if they should find all of the facts and things set forth in said instruction that their verdict should be for the plaintiff, even though they should believe that he or the driver of the car in which he was riding were negligent and drunk, did not inject the issue of contributory negligence into the case; that it did not unduly single out and comment on the evidence, did not tell the jury that the court favored plaintiff's evidence; and that under the circumstances in the case at bar both reason and authority support the proposition that the court had the right to tell the jury that upon finding the facts hypothesized in the instruction, the plaintiff was entitled to a verdict, even though he was negligent and drunk, does not conflict with any controlling decision of this court. This case is here on certiorari and this court is interested only in actual conflict with its controlling decisions, and not whether the Court of Appeals erred in its application of the law to the facts or whether it erred in deciding the case as an original proposition. State ex rel. St. L.-S.F. Ry. Co. v. Haid, 37 S.W. (2d) 438; State ex rel. Gatewood v. Trimble, 62 S.W. (2d) 758. The opinion of the Court of Appeals is consistent with controlling opinions of this court. Millhouser v. K.C. Pub. Serv. Co., 55 S.W. (2d) 676, Id., 71 S.W. (2d) 163; Wholf v. K.C., C.C. & St. J. Ry. Co., 73 S.W. (2d) 195; Pence v. K.C. Laundry Serv. Co., 59 S.W. (2d) 638; Kleinlein v. Foskin, 13 S.W. (2d) 648; Wallace v. St. J. Light, H. & P. Co., 77 S.W. (2d) 1012; Estes v. Desnoyers Shoe Co., 56 S.W. 316; Freeman v. Berberich, 60 S.W. (2d) 395; Inman v. Freund Bread Co., 58 S.W. (2d) 477; State ex rel. Berberich v. Haid, 64 S.W. (2d) 677; Silliman v. Munger Laundry Co., 44 S.W. (2d) 159; Wolfson v. Cohen, 55 S.W. (2d) 680; Derrington v. K.C. So. Ry. Co., 40 S.W. (2d) 1074; Demaray v. M.-K.-T. Ry. Co., 50 S.W. (2d) 130; Steger v. Meehan, 63 S.W. (2d) 109; Morgan v. Wabash Ry. Co., 60 S.W. 195; Moran v. A.T. & S.F. Ry. Co., 48 S.W. (2d) 881; Grubbs v. K.C. Pub. Serv. Co., 45 S.W. (2d) 79; Dutcher v. Wabash Ry. Co., 145 S.W. 63; Spencer v. Quincy, O.K. & C. Ry. Co., 297 S.W. 353; Kinlen v. Met. St. Ry. Co., 115 S.W. 523; Sethman v. Union Depot Bridge & Term. Ry. Co, 218 S.W. 879; Benzel v. Anishanzlin, 297 S.W. 183; Gordon v. Postal Telegraph-Cable Co., 24 S.W. (2d) 648; Swinehart v. K.C. Ry. Co., 233 S.W. 63; Murphy v. Wabash, 128 S.W. 481; Vogt v. Union Ry. Co., 251 S.W. 418; Spencer v. St. Louis Transit Co., 121 S.W. 112; Schmitter v. United Ry. Co., 245 S.W. 632; Adams v. St. Louis Pub. Serv. Co., 32 S.W. (2d) 100; Martin v. Keifer, 95 S.W. (2d) 1214. (2) The ruling of the Court of Appeals that does not conflict with any controlling opinion of this court. This case is here on certiorari and this court is interested only in actual conflict with its controlling decisions, and not whether the Court of Appeals erred in its application of the law to the facts or whether it erred in deciding the case as an original proposition. State ex rel. St. L. & S.F. Ry. Co. v. Haid, 37 S.W. (2d) 438; State ex rel. Gatewood v. Trimble, 62 S.W. (2d) 758. The opinion of the Court of Appeals is consistent with all of the opinions of this court. Wampler v. A., T. & S.F. Ry. Co., 190 S.W. 912, and the cases therein relied upon by respondent and distinguished from the Wampler case by Judge GRAVES. Wilhite v. Armstrong, 43 S.W. (2d) 423; Hogan v. K.C. Pub. Serv. Co., 62 S.W. (2d) 856; Szuch v. Ni-Sun Lines Inc., 58 S.W. (2d) 474; Gentili v. Dimaria, 89 S.W. (2d) 96; Polski v. St. Louis, 264 Mo. 458, 175 S.W. 197; Carver v. Thornhill, 53 Mo. 286; Sweet v. Maupin, 65 Mo. 68; Maplegreen Co. v. Trust Co., 237 Mo. 363, 141 S.W. 621; State ex rel. v. Woods, 234 Mo. 25, 136 S.W. 339; Colin v. Moldenhuer 92 S.W. (2d) 602.
This proceeding in certiorari by the Kansas City Public Service Company, a corporation, to test rulings of the Kansas City Court of Appeals in George King, respondent, v. Kansas City Public Service Company, appellant, decided February 17, 1936, and reported in 91 S.W. (2d) 89, reaches the writer upon reassignment.
The case arose out of a collision between an automobile in which plaintiff was riding and one of relator's street cars.
[1] I. Plaintiff's sole instruction predicating a recovery was based upon the humanitarian doctrine. Relator, not questioning here hat portion of the instruction hypothecating facts authorizing a recovery, says respondent judges erred in approving the "even though" or concluding portion of said instruction reading: "... and this is true even though you should also further believe that plaintiff, King, or the Ford driver was careless in getting into such peril, if here was such peril, and regardless of whether you believe the Ford river or plaintiff were sober or not." The issues bearing thereon are stated in the opinion of respondent judges [consult State ex rel. v. Daues (Banc), 297 S.W. 951, 953(3)]:
First. "The argument is that the instruction injected the issue of contributory negligence into the case, and that, as the case was one of negligence under the humanitarian doctrine, contributory negligence was not an issue." [91 S.W. (2d) l.c. 92(4).]
To sustain its contention of a conflict in that said "even though" clause erroneously injected the issue of contributory negligence into the case, relator relies upon the cases that may be found cited in Crews v. Kansas City Pub. Serv. Co., 341 Mo. 1090, 111 S.W. (2d) 54, 59(7), being, with one or two additions, the cases mentioned in the Court of Appeals' opinion at 91 S.W. (2d) l.c. 92. We shall not repeat the citations. Of said cases, relator places emphasis upon Schulz v. Smercina, 318 Mo. 486, 498(III, IV), 1 S.W. (2d) 113 118(5, 6, 7); Mayfield v. Kansas City So. Ry. Co., 337 Mo. 79, 87-91, 85 S.W. (2d) 116, 121, 123(6); Wholf v. Kansas City, C.C....
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