Baker v. Supreme Lodge Knights of Pythias

Citations

• 103 Miss. 374
• 60 So. 333

Syllabus

<p>1. Insurance. Life policy. Duel. Death as result-of violation of criminal law. Definition.</p> <p>A duel “is the fighting together of two persons by previous concert with deadly weapons to settle some antecedent quarrel,” and has none of the elements of sudden heat and passion. Held, that the transaction as shown by the evidence in this case was not a duel, within the terms of a policy limiting insurers liability under a life policy, in ease the insured died as a result of a duel.</p> <p>2. Insurance. Life policy. Death as result of violation oí criminal law’</p> <p>Under a policy of life insurance, providing that, “if the death of the member be caused or superinduced by the violation or attempted violation of any criminal law, the amount to be paid should be abated,” in order that the death of an assured may be said to have been caused, or superinduced in the violation or attempted violation of a criminal law within the meaning of this clause of the insurance policy, it must appear that his act bore such relation to his death that the latter would not “have occurred at the time and place, if assured had not been engaged in violating the law.</p> <p>3. Same.</p> <p>Where the insurer attempts to defend under this clause of its policy on the ground that deceased at the time of his death was carrying a deadly weapon concealed, the burden is on the insurer to show that such carrying of a concealed deadly weapon was done unlawfully, as under some circumstances it is lawful to carry concealed a deadly weapon.</p> <p>4. Life Insurance. Voluntary engaging in difficulty.</p> <p>Whether or not under the facts in this ease assured voluntarily engaged in the fight which resulted in his death was a question for the jury.</p>