Simonton v. Pierce

GRIFFIN, P. J. In this damage action arising out of a collision between two automobiles, which case was tried by the court without a jury, it rendered judgment in favor of plaintiff-respondent against defendant-appellant. A motion for new trial was denied.

Defendant and his wife were bound for Oklahoma in their Chevrolet sedan, and were traveling in the south lane, easterly, on United States Highway 99, in Beaumont, on May 14, 1954, about 6 :45 a.m. It was dark enough to require lights. Veile Street in said town runs north and south and intersects United States Highway 99 at about right angles. There is a boulevard stop sign about 10-15 feet south of a stop line painted on the pavement .across Veile Street at the south entrance to the intersection. United States Highway 99, at that point, consists of two lanes east and two lanes west. The two south lanes are divided by a white line and together occupy about 32 feet of the roadway which is abutted on the south by a 4-foot shoulder. At the time there was a rolling spotted fog hanging over the surrounding ground. At times it would be clear and later nothing could be seen. The visibility was poor. Defendant’s car had its dim lights burning.

Plaintiff, aged 63, was driving north on Veile Street in her Studebaker sedan about the same time and the headlights on her car were burning. She testified she stopped it at the white line; that she rolled down her front left window and saw a car approaching her from the west but it turned south on Veile [165]Street; that as she rolled up her window and started her car she looked west and saw defendant’s car coming out of a heavy roll of fog, very close to her (about 5 feet) and it was coming (without lights) directly at her car which was entering the south one-half of the intersection; that she immediately turned to her right to avoid a direct collision with it but it struck her car near the left front portion of it and after her car had proceeded about one or two car lengths; that she then estimated her speed at about 5-10 miles per hour; that defendant’s car shoved her ear sideways east on Highway 99 for some distance (about the width of a car). She testified she later accused defendant of driving his car without lights and admitted the officer pointed out to her that at least one of defendant’s front dim lights was still burning. The right front fender, light and bumper of defendant’s car had been crushed by the impact.

It was defendant’s testimony that as he approached the westerly city limit sign he was traveling about 35 miles per hour (the highway there was zoned for a 35-mile limit and a sign to this effect was posted near-by); that he first saw plaintiff’s car when he was 150-200 feet from the intersection involved; that there was some fog in the atmosphere; that the headlights on his car were on low beam at all times; that he believed plaintiff’s car was either stopped or traveling slowly at a speed of 3 to 5 miles per hour when he first saw it somewhere between the stop sign and the stop line (In his deposition, however, he testified it was either in a “standing or stopped position”); that about 70 feet from the intersection and as soon as he determined plaintiff was not going to stop, he applied his brakes, honked his horn, and the cars collided as described.