 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Carter v. Indianapolis Power & Light Co.11/10/2005
Case Summary
Susan J. Carter, individually and as personal representative of the estate of her son, Adam C. Jacobs, appeals the trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Indianapolis Power & Light Company ("IPL"), Indiana Bell Telephone Company, Inc. ("Indiana Bell") (collectively, "the Utilities"), Marion County Commissioners, and County of Marion, State of Indiana (collectively, "the County"). We affirm.
Issues
Carter presents six issues, which we consolidate and restate as follows:
I. Whether Carter has waived review of her contention that the trial court improperly granted the Utilities' motion to strike certain portions of her designated evidence;
II. Whether the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of the Utilities; and
III. Whether the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of the County.
Facts and Procedural History
The relevant facts most favorable to Carter, the non-moving party, indicate that on the afternoon of June 18, 1999, seventeen-year-old Jacobs and his seventeen-year-old friend, David Messer, made the acquaintance of seventeen-year-old waitress Sarah Mitchell at a pizza restaurant in Indianapolis. Jacobs and Messer returned to the restaurant when Mitchell's shift ended at midnight, and the trio went to Messer's home.
At approximately 2:30 a.m., Mitchell drove Jacobs and Messer toward a restaurant on Emerson Avenue in her Honda Accord. Mitchell drove north on Franklin Road and turned west on Edgewood Avenue, a straight two-lane thoroughfare with a speed limit of forty miles per hour. Jacobs was in the front seat, and Messer was in the back seat. None of the teens wore seatbelts. Jacobs suggested that they "jump the hills" on Edgewood Avenue, which he had done at least twenty times before. Appellant's App. at 143, 159. Mitchell accelerated to approximately sixty miles per hour and jumped several hills. She then accelerated to approximately eighty miles per hour before jumping "the big hill" near the intersection of Edgewood and Emerson Avenues. Id. at 143. Messer fastened his seatbelt. The car crested the hill, went airborne for a considerable distance, and landed in the middle of the road. Mitchell lost control of the car and oversteered to the right. The car sideswiped an Indiana Bell utility pole and spun clockwise several times. The car then slammed broadside into an IPL utility pole and caught fire. Messer escaped from the wreckage but was unable to rescue the unconscious Mitchell and Jacobs, both of whom died.
Carter reached a settlement with Mitchell's representative. On June 19, 2001, Carter filed an amended wrongful death complaint against the Utilities, the County, and several Honda defendants. Carter alleged, inter alia, that the Utilities had "negligently placed, installed, and maintained" the utility poles. The Indiana Bell pole (also known as "pole 65") was originally installed in 1978 and was replaced in June 1998 after being struck by an unknown vehicle. Id. at 553, 588. The center of pole 65 was located approximately fifteen inches south of the northern boundary of Edgewood Avenue's twenty-five-foot right-of-way as indicated by the Index of Roads (1822-1879) in the Marion County Surveyor's Office. Id. at 203. The IPL pole (also known as "pole 66") was installed in August 1998, and its center was located approximately four inches to the north of the right-of-way, i.e., on private property. Id. at 345, 203. Carter also alleged that the County had "negligently maintained, constructed, designed, and signed the section of roadway upon which the aforementioned accident occurred." Id. at 106.
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Indiana Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|