Abrams v. City of Seattle

Citations

• 60 Wash. 356
• 111 P. 168
• 1910 Wash. LEXIS 1049

Syllabus

<p>Electricity — Degree of Cabe — Presumptions—Res Ipsa Loquitur — Municipal Corporations. A city furnishing electric light for residential uses owes the highest degree of skill, care, and diligence, and a presumption of negligence arises, on the principle of res ipsa loquitur, where a private consumer, turning on an electric light in the ordinary manner, is electrocuted by reason of a defective ground for the secondary wire, which had come in contact with a primary wire in a high wind.</p> <p>Negligence — Presumptions—Res .Ipsa Loquitur — Instructions —Burden of Proof. Where the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur casts the burden of proof upon a city to overcome the presumption of negligence from the electrocution of a consumer while turning on an electric light in his residence, it is not prejudicial error to instruct the jury that the fact of the accident casts the burden upon the city to show by a fair preponderance of the testimony that it was not guilty of negligence (Rudkin, C. X, dissenting).</p> <p>Electricity — Degree of Care — Instructions — Municipal Corporations. In an action for wrongful death from electric shock caused by a defective ground in a secondary wire of a city lighting system, it is not prejudicial error to instruct the jury that every reasonable effort must be made to adopt and use all proper means readily obtainable and known to science, taken in connection with .other proper instructions on the subject.</p> <p>Electricity — Negligence — Evidence — Sufficiency — Municipal Corporations. The negligence of the city is for the jury, where a prima facie case was made by the fact that its electric lighting system electrocuted a private consumer while turning on a light in his residence, and there was evidence of a defective ground of the secondary wire, which became crossed with a primary wire, that such condition had existed several hours without giving notice of its condition, and that the system was not in proper order or not supplied with modern