Suwannee Val. Elec. Co-op. v. Live Oak, Perry & Gulf R. Co.
| Decision Date | 13 July 1954 |
| Citation | 73 So.2d 820 |
| Parties | SUWANNEE VALLEY ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, Inc. v. LIVE OAK, PERRY & GULF R. CO. |
| Court | Florida Supreme Court |
Rogers, Towers & Bailey and Elmer Norton, Jacksonville, and Alfred T. Airth, Live Oak, for appellant.
Marks, Gray, Yates & Conroy and Harry T. Gray, Jacksonville, and J. L. Blackwell, Live Oak, for appellee.
The Live Oak, Perry and Gulf Railroad Company, hereinafter called the Railroad Company, operates a railroad between Live Oak in Suwannee County and Perry in Taylor County with a branch line from Mayo Junction to Mayo in Lafayette County. Prior to 1945 Suwannee Valley Electric Cooperative, Inc., hereinafter called the Electric Company, was engaged in the business of distributing electricity to the rural communities of Suwannee, Lafayette and portions of Taylor Counties. While so engaged, the Electric Company secured permission from the Railroad Company to, and did in fact, cross the Railroad Company's tracks with high voltage wires between Mayo and Mayo Junction. Said crossing was made with two wires, the lower one being known as the bottom or ground wire and the upper one being known as the hot or phase wire.
The Railroad Company owned and operated a flat car on which a derrick was installed. February 23, 1948, while the Railroad Company was operating said flat car the derrick struck the hot or phase wire resulting in serious injury to one Bevel, an employee of the Railroad Company who was riding on the flat car near the derrick. Bevel brought an action against the Railroad Company in the Federal Court and recovered damages for personal injuries in the sum of $20,000 which the Railroad Company paid. Bevel's suit was grounded on the theory that the Railroad Company failed to provide him a safe place to work in that the hot wire of the Electric Company was maintained lower than good practice permitted.
This suit was brought by the Railroad Company against the Electric Company for indemnity, account of the $20,000 judgment for damages it paid to Bevel. The Electric Company denied the material allegations of the complaint and alleged that the cause of Bevel's injuries was permitting the power line to be placed at such a level that the derrick would contact it, that the Railroad Company negligently failed to warn its employee of danger, that the plaintiff was a joint tort-feasor and that it was guilty of contributory negligence in that it failed to exercise ordinary care in the operation of its flat car. At the trial a jury was waived, evidence was taken and the court entered final judgment for the Railroad Company in the sum of $20,000 with interest. The Electric Company has appealed from that judgment.
Four questions are urged for reversal. Questions one and two have to do with rulings of the trial court on pleadings and question three has to do with his ruling on motion for directed verdict. We find no error in any of these rulings. The fourth question is grounded on contributory negligence and the charge...
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