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Monk v. State6/29/2005
s.
DOTD also contends the trial court abused its discretion in awarding damages of $75,000.00 for emotional distress to Judith Beverly. Mrs. Beverly was Reba Harmon's mother, and was working in her yard when she heard the accident (she lived less than a quarter mile from the intersection) and the sirens from the emergency vehicles called to the scene. Only a few minutes prior to that, Reba Harmon and the children had stopped by Mrs. Beverly's house. A neighbor came up to Mrs. Beverly and told her there had been an accident and she needed to go with her. Mrs. Beverly then went to the accident scene and saw her daughter motionless in the driver's seat. She knew her daughter was seriously injured, but did not find out she was dead until she arrived at the hospital. DOTD argues Mrs. Beverly is not entitled to damages "inasmuch as she sought no medical attention nor expressed significant distress in having viewed the scene."
However, in Lejeune v. Rayne Branch Hospital, 556 So.2d 559 (La.1990), the Louisiana Supreme Court recognized a plaintiff's right to recover damages for severe mental pain and anguish caused by witnessing serious injury to a close relation. Such LeJeune damages, as they are commonly referred to, have since been codified in La.Civ.Code art. 2315.6. Under article 2315.6, there are four basic requirements to recover damages for mental anguish or emotional distress suffered as a result of another person's injury. The requirements are as follows: 1) the claimant must have a specifically enumerated relationship with the injured person; 2) the claimant must have viewed an event causing injury to the injured person or have come upon the scene of the event soon thereafter; 3) the harm to the injured person must have been severe enough that one could reasonably expect the observer to suffer serious mental distress; and 4) the claimant must suffer emotional distress that is "severe, debilitating, and foreseeable." Trahan v. McManus, 97-1224, p. 8, n. 6 (La.3/2/99), 728 So.2d 1273, 1278, n. 6. Pursuant to the language of article 2315.6, a child and parent are clearly among those persons with a sufficient relationship to enable recovery of Lejeune damages.
We find Mrs. Beverly carried her burden of proving she suffered severe emotional distress as a result of witnessing the death of her daughter. She testified having to witness the condition of her daughter and three grandchildren at the accident scene was extremely devastating. Although we find the award of damages may have be on the high side, we find it does not amount to an abuse of discretion. See Cox, 805 So.2d 277 (wherein this court found the trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding $150,000 for a mother's mental anguish at witnessing the death of her daughter at an automobile accident scene.)
DOTD appealed the award of $25,000.00 in LeJeune damages to Brandon Monk for seeing his mother killed. At oral argument, counsel for Brandon Monk conceded that the trial court erred in rendering this award. By Brandon's own testimony, his first memories of the accident were when he awoke in the hospital. Therefore, the trial court erred in awarding LeJeune damages.
DECREE
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the trial court awarding Brandon Monk $25,000.00 for his mental anguish in seeing his mother killed is reversed. The judgment is affirmed in all other respects. All costs of this appeal are assessed to defendant-appellant, DOTD.
AFFIRMED IN PART; REVERSED IN PART AND RENDERED.
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