Strazza v. McKittrick

• Court: Supreme Court of Connecticut
• Writing for the Court: Before BALDWIN; SHEA
• Citation: 146 Conn. 714,156 A.2d 149
• Parties: Angeline STRAZZA et al. v. Richard McKITTRICK et al. Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut
• Decision Date: 17 November 1959

Page 149

156 A.2d 149 146 Conn. 714 Angeline STRAZZA et al.
v.
Richard McKITTRICK et al. Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut. Nov. 17, 1959.

[146 Conn. 715]

Page 150

Frank DeNezzo, Hartford, for appellants (defendants).

William R. Davis, Hartford, with whom was Joseph C. Linnon, Hartford, for appellee (named plaintiff).

Before [146 Conn. 714] BALDWIN, C. J., and KING, MURPHY, MELLITZ and SHEA, JJ.

[146 Conn. 715] SHEA, Associate Justice.

The defendants have appealed from a judgment awarding damages to the named plaintiff for injuries alleged to have been sustained by her when a truck owned by the defendant Century Corrugated[146 Conn. 716] and Paper Supply Company, Inc., was driven against the porch of the plaintiffs' dwelling house. The defendants seek certain corrections in the finding and have also attacked the conclusion of the trial court that the named plaintiff, hereinafter called the plaintiff, was entitled to recover damages for personal injuries resulting from fright or nervous shock.

The finding, with such corrections as are warranted, discloses the following facts: The plaintiff and her husband, the other plaintiff, were joint owners of property on Woodbridge Street in New London. They occupied the second floor of a wooden house on the premises. On February 14, 1956, a truck owned by the defendant corporation and driven by the named defendant as its authorized agent struck the rear porch of the house with such force that the steps and porch were completely demolished. At the time, the plaintiff was carrying dishes

Page 151

to the sink in her kitchen, which was located two rooms away from the back of the house. When the truck struck, there was a terrific crash. The impact shook the house, causing the plaintiff to drop the dishes, lose her balance, and lean against the sink. Some of the dishes crashed to the floor; others were thrown from the kitchen cabinet. The plaintiff screamed with fright and became hysterical, thinking of disaster by earthquake. For a number of years previously, she had been under medical care for a nervous condition. She had, however, not seen a doctor for five or six months prior to the accident and was in good health at the time. Shortly before the accident, she had directed her seven-year-old son to sit on the porch and wait for her. She was within the range of ordinary physical danger from the force of the collision but suffered no consequential [146 Conn. 717] physical injury. Sometime after the impact, her husband inquired about the boy, and the plaintiff, thinking that the boy had been on the porch, became fearful that he had been injured. This fear aroused a new anxiety. Later on, the child returned to the house, unharmed. The plaintiff was treated by physicians for a nervous condition resulting from the fear of injury to her child, and bills for this treatment and attention were incurred by her. The history given by her to each of her doctors recited her anxiety from fear of injury to her child but said nothing concerning any fear of injury to herself. For some time after the accident the plaintiff was apprehensive when she heard...