191 A. 126 | Pa. | 1937
Argued March 23, 1937. The plaintiff brought an action in trespass against the Borough of Grove City to recover damages for personal injuries alleged to have been sustained by him in a fall upon the ice on the sidewalk on Broad Street in that borough. The latter summoned, as additional defendants, The Brookville Title Trust Company, hereinafter referred to as the trust company, and T. J. Robinson, owners of the abutting property, and Autenreith Company, tenant in possession of the ground floor of the trust company, and G. C. Murphy Company which was in entire possession of the T. J. Robinson building.
At about 7:30 A. M., February 9th, 1934, plaintiff, while walking on the sidewalk on the west side of Broad Street, slipped on the ice in front of the properties of the trust company and T. J. Robinson, thereby injuring his right foot and ankle. This ice resulted from water flowing from the down spout which drained the roof over a stairway leading to the second floors of the two buildings owned, respectively, by the trust company and *63 T. J. Robinson. The water from the spout fell on the sidewalk and froze. The sidewalk is from ten to twelve feet in width. The patch of ice was about two and one-half feet to four feet wide at the building line and extended out to about midway to the curb, narrowing down to about eighteen inches to two feet at the center of the sidewalk. The sidewalk was bare from the center to the curb. The ice was thin and dirty.
The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff in the sum of $6,500 against the original defendant, i. e., the Borough of Grove City, and a similar verdict in favor of that borough against the additional defendants, the trust company and T. J. Robinson. Defendants moved for judgment n. o. v. which was refused. The verdict was reduced to $4,000, and from this judgment the original defendant and the trust company have appealed.
The only question raised in this appeal is whether or not the plaintiff was guilty of contributory negligence in traversing that part of the sidewalk covered with ice.
The plaintiff testified that as he approached the ice all he saw "was just a dark spot on the sidewalk," that the ice where he fell was covered with "soot and dirt," and that there were people walking over it. Another witness testified that the color of the ice did not differ very much from the color of the sidewalk and that it was not clearly visible unless one were looking for it. Other witnesses testified that they walked over it and did not see it. The place where this accident occurred is described as one of the most traveled places in Grove City. At the time plaintiff fell he was looking at another pedestrian who was ten or twelve feet ahead of him.
Under the facts of this case, plaintiff's contributory negligence was for the jury. This court, in Dean v. NewCastle,
In the case of Davis v. Wilkes-Barre,
In Slife v. Borough of Dorranceton,
In the recent case of Ross et at. v. Mayflower DrugStores, Inc.,
The judgments are affirmed. *65