Murphy's Hotel, Inc. v. Cuddy's Adm'r

Citations

• 124 Va. 207
• 97 S.E. 794
• 1919 Va. LEXIS 123

Syllabus

<p>1. Carriers—Elevator—Common Cairier.—The prevailing doctrine with respect to the duty of. one maintaining a passenger elevator in a hotel or other public building is, that he is a common carrier and governed by the same rules as other common carriers. That is to say, (although not an insurer of the safety .of his passengers) he is required to exercise the highest degree of care and diligence in the maintenance and operation of the elevator to prevent injury to passengers.</p> <p>2: Carriers—Presumption of Negligence.—If an injury to a passenger is caused by an apparatus wholly under the control of the carrier and furnished and applied by it, and the accident is of such a character as does not ordinarily occur if due care is used, the law comes to the aid of the plaintiff and raises a presumption of negligence. The presumption arises, however, from the nature of the accident and the circumstances, and not from the mere fact of the accident itself.</p> <p>3. Carriers—Presumption of Negligence—Elevator.—When it ia shown that an injured person was a passenger on the defendant carrier’s elevator, and that the injury resulted during the operation or movement of the conveyance, a presumption of want of care arises, placing on the defendant the burden of showing freedom from negligence.</p> <p>4. Witnesses—Adverse 'Witness—Code 1V0&, Section 3351.—In an action by an administrator against the owner of a hotel for the death of his intestate, a guest of the hotel, who was killed in an elevator accident, the trial court permitted the elevator operator to be called by the plaintiff as an adverse witness and examined according to the rules applicable to the examination and contradiction of such a witness under Code 1904, sec. 3351. The operator was the only eye-witness to the accident. Consequently plaintiff had no choice but to introduce him; and his testimony vindicated the court’s ruling in permitting him to be examined as an adverse witness.</p> <p>Held: That the contentio