Board of County Commissioners v. Jacobs

Citations

• 79 Kan. 76
• 99 P. 817
• 1908 Kan. LEXIS 191

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>1. Damages —■ Negligently Conétructed Bridge — Liability of County. A county, while engaged in building a bridge upon a public highway, acts as a subdivision of the state government, and is not liable for the negligent performance of such work unless expressly made so by statute.</p> <p>2. -Defective Bridge—Overflow of Land. Under the provisions of section 579 of the General Statutes of 1901 a bridge is defective only when the defect affects its safety or usefulness as a part of the public highway.</p> <p>3. -Same. A county constructed a bridge where the public highway crossed a stream. The bridge as constructed was in perfect condition for all the purposes of a highway, but by-reason of the abutments being too low it obstructed the flow-of the water during- unusually heavy rains, so as to cause it to overflow adjacent farm lands and injure the crops thereon. Reid, that section 579 of the General Statutes of 1901 does not create any liability against the county in favor of the owner of such lands.</p>