Travelers' Ins. Co. v. Allen
| Decision Date | 16 October 1916 |
| Docket Number | 4630. |
| Citation | 237 F. 78 |
| Parties | TRAVELERS' INS. CO. v. ALLEN. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
William F. Gurley, of Omaha, Neb. (Joseph W. Woodrough and David A Fitch, both of Omaha, Neb., on the brief), for plaintiff in error.
Gerald F. Harrington, of Omaha, Neb. (R. M. Johnson and M. F Harrington, of O'Neill, Neb., on the brief), for defendant in error.
Before HOOK and SMITH, Circuit Judges, and AMIDON, District Judge.
This is an action by the beneficiary of a policy of accident insurance issued to Zachariah Cuddington. The insured was found dead in his room in a hotel in Omaha, Neb., on the morning of October 30, 1914. It was agreed that his death resulted from suffocation by gas. The defense was that he committed suicide--a cause of death not covered by the policy. The jury found the issue for the plaintiff, and judgment was rendered accordingly.
The defendant contends that the undisputed evidence showed suicide, and therefore the trial court erred in denying its motion for a directed verdict. It must be admitted that the evidence as a whole pointed quite strongly to suicide, but we cannot say there was not substantial evidence to the contrary, and that the conclusion of the court and jury was unjustified. There were some substantial conflicts in the evidence. This was particularly so as to the testimony of the hotel porter, but as he and those who testified upon the same matters were before the jury it was their province to determine where the truth lay. A chambermaid, who first looked into the room from an unlocked door of the one adjoining, said the gas smelled stronger in the latter place also that the transom over the door leading from the room of the insured to the hall was open-- a fact rather inconsistent with suicide intelligently premeditated. A friend who was with the insured at the hotel until some time after 9 o'clock the previous evening testified that they had a pleasant, cheerful time together. Much is made of two letters in the handwriting of the insured, found in his possession addressed to a niece, and showing a contemplation of death. Assuming they were originals, and not copies retained by him we do not attach great significance to them. They were dated May 1st and 5th of the same year, nearly six months before his death, and his expressions which are regarded as so indicative were of a general character, and the not unnatural...
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