124 So. 2d 684 | Miss. | 1960
This is the second appearance of the above styled cause on appeal to this Court. See Mississippi State Highway Commission v. Taylor, 237 Miss. 847, 116 So. 2d 757. The first verdict was in the sum of $40,000, which was held to be grossly excessive and the case was also reversed on the further ground that there had been reversible error in the exclusion of evidence offered by the appellant as to the purchase price paid by the appellees for the property through which the right of way was being condemned. The purchase had been made four and one-half years prior to the trial at a price of $15,-000. The Court here held that the purchase price paid under such circumstances was a factor which a prospective purchaser would consider in arriving at the value of the property before the taking of the 21.69-acre strip of the land of the appellees.
The Court is now of the opinion, after a careful consideration of all of the competent testimony in the case, that the verdict is still grossly excessive and that the case should be reversed unless within ten days from this date the appellees shall enter a remittitur reducing the amount of the verdict from $25,000 to the sum of $17,500. There are other alleged errors assigned, such
The farm of the appellees, which was bisected by the 21.69-acre strip taken for the right of way by the appellant, consisted of approximately 124 acres of land which was located approximately three miles southwest of Ellis-ville in Jones County, Mississippi and used largely as a pasture for an indefinite number of cattle. Across the northern portion of this tract of land there extended in a northeasterly and southwesterly direction a blacktopped State Highway No. 590 which ran near the front of the residence of the appellees. Under the new construction this highway was to extend across and above the 21.69-acre right of way for the limited access highway which the Highway Commission was constructing.
"We think that the court correctly excluded the testimony of the witness, M. P. Carter, but the values of the property given by him before the taking and the amount of the damages to the appellees by reason of the taking of the right of way, was before the jury in the main under reserve rulings before the testimony of this witness was finally excluded.
It should be said, however, that the testimony discloses that in the 21.69-acre strip of land taken, there was one three-room tenant house. The record on this appeal does not disclose how old this tenant house was nor anything about its state of repair or value. Nor was there any proof offered to substantiate the claim of the appellees that they had expended slightly in excess of $11,000 for repairs and improvements on the 124-acre tract after they had purchased the same at the price of $15,000, nor as to what the well, pump and butane gas system taken in the condemnation proceeding were reasonably worth, nor as to whether a sufficient amount of the pasture land was left accessible to the landowners to sufficiently support whatever herd of cattle would be maintained on the premises in the operation conducted by the appellees thereon.
It is the opinion of the Court that if a remittitur is entered within ten days from this date reducing the total judgment as heretofore stated, the case should be affirmed with remittitur, otherwise it will be reversed for another trial on the ground of the gross excessiveness of the verdict.
It is so ordered.
Affirmed with remittitur.