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Barnett v. Carr9/17/2001
Plaintiffs-appellants, Jesse Barnett ("Jesse") and his parents, Tammy and Jesse Osborne, appeal a decision of the Butler County Court of Common Pleas granting summary judgment in favor of defendantsappellees, Rick and Martha Baker, in a personal injury action. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
This case arises from an automobile accident that occurred in the late evening hours of March 14, 1998 at the intersection of Sycamore Street and Radabaugh Road in Madison Township, Butler County, Ohio. Thomas Combs ("Combs") and Jesse were passengers in a car driven by William Brian Carr ("Carr"). Jesse was severely and permanently injured, and Combs and Carr were killed, when Carr lost control of the vehicle, causing an accident.
The scene of the accident can be best described as follows: Sycamore Street is an east-west paved roadway which dead-ends on its east end into Radabaugh Road in a "L" intersection. At the end of Sycamore Street is a "stop" sign. One turning right at the intersection (going southbound) drives onto a gravel private road, whereas one turning left at the intersection (going northbound) drives on Radabaugh Road, a paved roadway. The speed limit is thirty-five m.p.h. Appellees reside at 3200 Radabaugh Road. In their front yard, next to their driveway, is a twenty-two thousand pound boulder, which before the accident was located fifteen feet from the roadway. In his deposition, Rick Baker testified that the boulder was not directly across Radabaugh Road from Sycamore Street.
On the evening of March 14, 1998, Jesse, Combs, and Carr went to a wedding reception where they drank alcohol. Jesse and Carr had also been drinking alcohol prior to the reception, after they had left work. All three eventually left the reception together and were driving on eastbound Sycamore Street. Ashford McGuire ("McGuire") lives on Sycamore Street at the corner of Sycamore Street and Radabaugh Road, across from appellees' house. In his deposition, McGuire testified that as the car was approaching the intersection, and as it passed his house, "the car was still winding out," that is, "like you step on the accelerator." Knowing that they would not make the corner, McGuire told his wife to call 911.
The vehicle ran the stop sign at the end of Sycamore Street, went airborne, struck the boulder in appellees' front yard, and flipped over before landing and sliding to a final rest against a tree. The force of the collision caused the twenty-two thousand pound boulder to move fourteen inches. The vehicle was traveling at about seventy-four m.p.h. as it was approaching the intersection. Carr and Combs were found dead at the scene. With the help of McGuire and other people at the scene, Jesse was able to extricate himself from the car before it became engulfed with flames.
In his deposition, McGuire testified that following the accident, he visited Jesse once at the hospital, and that Jesse called him twice. During their conversations, Jesse stated that he was in the back seat scared, telling Carr to slow down, but that Carr, goaded on by Combs, was driving fast to scare Jesse. McGuire also testified that two days after the accident, some of Jesse's relatives came to the scene of the accident. There, they told McGuire that Carr had lived in an apartment complex one mile up Sycamore Street for two years, had driven Sycamore Street numerous times, and knew about the "L" intersection.
Appellants filed a complaint against appellees on February 11, 1999, and an amended complaint on December 15, 1999, alleging negligence, premises liability, and loss of parental consortium. On January 20, 2000, appellees filed a motion for summary judgment. On Februa
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