Brown v. Mayor of Wilmington

Citations

• 27 Del. 492
• 4 Boyce 492
• 90 A. 44
• 1914 Del. LEXIS 62

Syllabus

<p>1. Municipal Corporations—Use of Streets—Care Required.</p> <p>Vehicles and pedestrians have equal rights in the use of public streets, and each must exercise reasonable care to prevent collisions.</p> <p>2. Municipal Corporations—Police Patrol—Negligence—Liability.</p> <p>Where the police patrol wagon was run at a dangerous speed under the circumstances, or failed to give plaintiff, a pedestrian, timely warning of its approach, whereby plaintiff was injured, and the plaintiff was in the exercise of due care, the city is liable.</p> <p>3. Municipal Corporations—Injury to Pedestrian—Contributory Negligence—Liability.</p> <p>Where the negligence of plaintiff, a pedestrian, injured by the police patrol wagon, contributed to the accident in which his injuries were received he cannot recover.</p> <p>4. Municipal Corporations—Injury to Pedestrian—Intoxication— Question for Jury.</p> <p>Voluntary intoxication of the plaintiff, a pedestrian, injured by an automobile, may be considered by the jury in determining whether, at the time of the accident, he was taking such care of his safety as would be required of a reasonably prudent man under the circumstances.</p> <p>5. Negligence—Last Chance Doctrine.</p> <p>In an action for personal injuries, the plaintiff may recover, notwithstanding some negligence on his part, if it was the negligence of the defendant alone that was the immediate cause of the accident; in other words, if, notwithstanding any previous negligence of the plaintiff, the defendant could have prevented the accident by the use of ordinary care.</p> <p>6. Municipal Corporations—Streets—Vehicles—Incapacitated Pedestrians—Negligence.</p> <p>One driving or operating a vehicle is bound to consider the lack of capacity of those in his way, such as children, or blind or drunken persons, to care for their safety, when such incapacity is known, or should have been known by him by the exercise of reasonable care.</p> <p>7. Municipal Corporations—Unavoidable Accident—V