Jones v. O'Neal

WOOD (W. J.), J. Plaintiffs are the owner and the driver respectively of a truck involved in a collision with a truck owned by defendant O’Neal and driven by defendant Conner. Plaintiff Jones sought a judgment for damages to his truck and plaintiff Timmons sought a judgment for damages for personal injuries. Defendant O’Neal filed a cross-complaint asking for a judgment for damages to his own truck. Each of the various parties denied negligence on his own part and alleged negligence on the part of the opposing parties. The action was tried by the court without a jury and findings and judgment were filed in favor of plaintiffs on both the complaint and the cross-complaint. From this judgment defendants have appealed.

[78]The collision occurred on June 18, 1940, on a desert road in. Imperial County. The road had a gravel surface and its width was estimated by the various witnesses at from 16 to 26 feet. Just before the collision the truck driven by Timmons was travelling in a northerly direction and the truck driven by Conner was travelling in a southerly direction. Defendant Conner gave testimony which unquestionably would have supported findings in his favor if the trial court had given sufficient credit to his testimony. It is contended on this appeal that Conner’s testimony showed positively that Timmons was on the wrong side of the road and that “there was no evidence that plaintiffs’ truck was at any time on the right hand side of the travelled portion of the highway. ’ ’

Plaintiff Timmons testified that each truck was about iy2 feet in width and that there was sufficient room to pass if each driver had kept his truck on his own side of the road; that he had seen Conner’s truck approach when they were 250 to 300 feet apart, at which time he (Timmons) was operating his truck at a speed of from 20 to 25 miles per hour; when he saw the approach of Conner’s truck he pulled over to his right'' as far as it was safe to do so” and continued to travel “along this ridge of material that was thrown up there”; that he pulled to the east side of the road; that at the time of the impact of the two trucks he was travelling “around 20 miles an hour” and that Conner’s truck was travelling “around 40 miles an hour”; that the left front of Conner’s truck struck the truck driven by the witness. Under well established rules of law the evidence must, of course, be considered on appeal in the light most favorable to the prevailing party in the lower court and if the record discloses substantial evidence to support the findings they must be upheld. The trial court could draw reasonable inferences from the evidence presented and make findings thereon. We are satisfied that from the testimony of Timmons the court could reasonably draw the inference that Timmons was driving properly on his own side of the road at the time of the impact and that defendant Conner was driving negligently.