12 Ga. App. 849 | Ga. Ct. App. | 1913
(After stating the foregoing facts.) As to the general grounds, it may be stated that .the evidence is in some conflict as to the exact cause of the plaintiff’s injuries. Unquestionably he received a severe shock from an electric current when he attempted to turn on an electric light in the lumber company’s plant. But the electric company insists that the mere fact that he did receive this shock is not sufficient to raise an inference of negligence against it, under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur, in any of the ways alleged in the petition; and it is insisted that his injuries could well have resulted from some defect of the lamp socket or in the interior wiring, for which the electric company was in no way responsible; or that they might have resulted from the plaintiff’s own negligence, because it was shown by testimony of the highest expert character, and by - an actual demonstration in the court-room on the trial of the ease, that he could have received the injuries by grasping a defective light socket through which no more than 110 volts were passing; that the evidence shows that the plaintiff stood upon the damp earth or brick floor when he took hold of the socket of the light for the purpose of turning the light on, and that, standing on such damp earth or brick floor, even a current of 110 volts would have been sufficient to give him the shock he received. There was evidence that the light socket was defective, and that by reason of this defect, for which the lumber company and not the electric company was responsible, the current of electricity passed out into the plaintiff. There was evidence also which tended to support the theory of the petition on the question of negligence. There was positive evidence that the primary and secondary wires had been permitted to come in contact with each other outside of the plant or the transformer, and by this contact the full current carried by the primary wires had been transmitted to the secondary wires and on into the plant. It was also shown by the evidence for the plaintiff that it would have required from 400 to 1,000 volts of electrical current to produce the effect on the plaintiff which was caused by the shock he received. These theories of the evidence presented perplexing problems, which
Another contention of the plaintiff in error which is urged with a great deal of earnestness is that the evidence shows that the
The sixth and seventh grounds of the amended motion for a new trial except to the admission of testimony, over the objection of defendant, that the lightning arrester had fallen from the pole in the vicinity of the lumber company’s plant, where the injury is alleged to have occurred, and that the wire that goes in the top of the arrester was out and dangling, after the arrester itself had fallen to the ground. The objection to this evidence was that the petition contained no allegation of negligence in having a defective lightning arrester. The judge instructed the jury that there could be no recovery for damages resulting from a defective lightning
The other grounds of the motion for a new trial consist of exceptions to excerpts from the charge'of the court. We have examined the excerpts in connection with the general charge, and we fail to find any material error. Indeed, we are impressed with the idea that the charge as a whole was a very fair and able presentation of all the issues in the case and of the law applicable thereto, and that the defendant has had a fair trial, and no reason is shown why the verdict in behalf of the plaintiff should be disturbed by this court. Judgment affirmed.