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Mercer v. Pittway Corp.9/7/2000
athan also learned that an ionization detector would pick up both invisible and visible smoke and that a photoelectric smoke detector would basically pick up visible smoke, which would eliminate a lot of nuisance alarms from cooking or from steam. Nathan was also informed that it was best to install photoelectric smoke detectors in the kitchen area and that the ionization detector could be installed in all other areas of the house, including in bedrooms or sleeping areas. Nathan stated he considered installing other smoke detectors on the second floor, but felt he was financially unable to do so.
Between 8:15 and 8:20 p.m. on January 18, 1993, Nathan carried Bradley to the second floor of their duplex home and put him to bed. Bradley's brother, Travis, was already sleeping in his bed in the same room. Nathan then went downstairs to the living room.
Approximately twenty minutes later, around 8:45 or 8:46 p.m., Nathan and Jennifer heard a "thump" from upstairs. The lights in the room also flickered and the furnace kicked on. Shortly thereafter, Jennifer smelled smoke and headed up the stairs to check on the children, while Nathan ran into the kitchen to get a fire extinguisher. Jennifer testified that she ran up the stairs, but stopped two or three steps from the top of the stairs, not because of smoke, but because she was unsure whether to proceed into the bedroom. Jennifer then turned and went back down the stairs, meeting Nathan halfway down. Both Jennifer and Nathan testified that they did not hear the smoke detector, installed on the ceiling of the second-floor landing, alarming at this time. Nathan told Jennifer to go call 911 and proceeded up the stairs. Jennifer then ran to the neighbor's half of the duplex and called 911 while Nathan continued up the stairs.
Nathan testified that by the time he reached the top of the stairs, the smoke extended about one foot away from the floor. Nathan testified he heard no alarm coming from the smoke detector. Nathan tried to lie down so he could slide on his stomach to reach the bedroom, but the smoke was "too choking." Nathan then tried putting a shirt around his mouth and tried to go back up the stairs, but he was not successful. He tried at least three times to get through the smoke, but was unable to enter the children's bedroom.
During this same time, the Mercers' neighbor on the other side of the duplex, Jimmy Sprout, heard a smoke detector alarming and had been halfway up his own stairs when he realized it was not his detector. He walked back down to his living room and at that point, Jennifer came into the Sprouts' side of the duplex to call 911. Jennifer's 911 call was recorded by the dispatch at 8:52 p.m.
Nathan and Jimmy Sprout then ran up the Sprout's stairs. With his bare hands, Nathan tore a hole in the common duplex wall, reached through the hole, and pulled Travis through the hole. He ran outside where he handed Travis to a firefighter. The record shows the fire department arrived at 8:57 p.m. Firefighters using self-contained breathing apparatus searched the two bedrooms and found Bradley in his bed.
Firefighters described the fire in the children's bedroom as a small, flaming fire, approximately four feet by four feet in size, that was quickly extinguished with "just a quick shot of water" from the hose. Certain firefighters also testified at trial that they had no recollection of hearing a smoke detector alarm prior to the time that they found Bradley. Fire Captain Stoelk testified he recalled hearing the smoke detector alarm at the same time he saw Lieutenant Ryan descending the stairs with Bradley in his arms and estimated that the smoke detector alarm sounded approximately two a
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