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plaintiffdefendantnegligencetrial

defendantnegligencetrial

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Henneman v. McCalla, 260 Iowa 60, 148 N.W.2d 447

Facts

The tragic events began on August 1, 1963, when a Ford pickup truck, driven by Mariann Sue McCalla, collided with a car driven by Dan McComb. After the initial collision, Clara Henneman, the decedent, stopped to assist the McCalla driver. A few minutes later, an intoxicated motorist, Floyd Raymond Peterman, struck the McCalla pickup, causing it to hit Henneman, resulting in her instantaneous death. The jury found that the negligence of both the McCalla driver and Peterman contributed to the accident.

The ultimately tragic chain of events began about 11:00 P.M., August 1, 1963, on highways 2 and 71, near the east edge of Clarinda. An east bound Ford pickup owned by defendant David McCalla, consent operated by his defendant sister, 18 year old Mariann Sue McCalla, attempted a left no intersection turn just as a same direction automobile operated by Dan McComb was starting to pass.

Issue

The main legal issue was whether the negligence of the pickup truck driver and the intoxicated motorist were both proximate causes of the decedent's death.

Defendants contend the trial court, as a matter of law, should have determined the acts and conduct of Peterman constituted an ‘intervening cause’.

Rule

Proximate cause is defined as any cause that, in a natural and continuous sequence, produces the result complained of, and without which the result would not have occurred. The question of proximate cause is generally for the jury to determine.

‘Proximate cause’ is any cause which in natural and continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces the result complained of and without which the result would not have occurred.

Analysis

The court analyzed the facts and determined that the jury could reasonably conclude that the McCalla pickup's precarious position on the highway was a direct result of Mariann's negligence in the first accident. This created a hazard that, when combined with Peterman's concurrent negligence, led to Henneman's death. The court emphasized that the jury's determination of proximate cause was supported by the evidence presented.

The factual situation in the case at hand discloses the jury could reasonably find the chain of events was such that the McCalla pickup would not have been in its precarious position on the highway were it not for the first accident, this resulted from Mariann's negligence, and the position of the McCalla vehicle created a hazard which, coupled with the concurrent negligence of Peterman, caused the second death dealing collision.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the judgment against the defendants, concluding that the jury's finding of concurrent negligence was justified and that the trial court did not err in its instructions regarding proximate cause.

Affirmed.

Who won?

The plaintiff-administrator prevailed in the case because the jury found that the negligence of both the McCalla driver and the intoxicated motorist contributed to the death of Clara Henneman.

The jury here determined, upon special interrogatory, Peterman's negligence was not the sole proximate cause of Clara Henneman's death.

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