295 Mass. 454 | Mass. | 1936
This is an action of tort brought by a minor, who, while a pedestrian on a highway in the town of Orange in this Commonwealth, received personal injuries by being struck by an automobile owned and operated by the defendant.
The accident occurred at about eight o’clock on the evening of March 23,1934, at the intersection of two streets. The defendant was driving his automobile in a westerly direction. One Leary, a State police officer, testified that on the evening of the accident he and one Cunniff, another officer, were patrolling the Mohawk Trail together in a cruising car; that when they came toward the crossing where the accident occurred, the defendant passed them and the left headlight on his automobile was out; that the witness
The defendant, who was called by the plaintiff, testified that he was familiar with the route; that he came from Worcester the day of the accident; that the first time he knew that one of the headlights on his automobile was not lighted was after he stopped in Orange; that he stopped at the red light two or three feet from the crosswalk; that while he was waiting there the light turned green; that as he did not see anyone when the light turned he started ahead; and that when he started there was no one walking across the street in front of him.
Upon consideration of the entire evidence, a verdict could not properly have been directed for the defendant. It could have been found upon the evidence that the plaintiff attempted to cross the street and fell when she was three quarters of the way over; that before she started to cross she saw the automobile of the officers and that of the defendant, which were stopped and waiting for the signals to change; and that the traffic light showing toward the south was green when she started to cross the street. This evidence did not require a finding of contributory negligence on her part. Gray v. Batchelder, 208 Mass. 441. Jackson v. Queen, 257 Mass. 515. Margeson v. Town Taxi, Inc. 266 Mass. 192. The circumstance that the defendant was operating his automobile when the left headlight was not lighted at night, in violation of G. L. (Ter. Ed.) c. 90, § 7, as amended, was evidence of negligence. It could have been found that the plaintiff could have been seen by the defendant when he started his automobile and that if he had been in the exercise of due care he would have avoided running over her. Isaacson v. Boston, Worcester
As a verdict could not properly have been directed for the defendant, the entry must be
Exceptions overruled.