A. W. MURDOCH AND CAROL MURDOCH, HIS WIFE, APPELLANTS,
v.
CITY OF JACKSONVILLE BEACH, A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, APPELLEE
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The appellate court affirmed a judgment for the defendant city in a negligence action. The court found no competent evidence that the city's maintenance of a sidewalk with a nine-inch drop to the street, despite a safety stripe, constituted negligence proximately causing the plaintiff's injury.
No, the court held that the visible nine-inch step, even with a safety stripe, did not constitute negligence per se and there was no competent evidence of negligence proximately causing the injury.
“Steps and elevated floor levels are common in public places, and when readily visible do not constitute negligence per se.”
Establishes the legal principle that visible steps are not automatically negligent.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe plaintiffs alleged the City of Jacksonville Beach was negligent by allowing a sidewalk to remain nine inches higher than the lowered street level …
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In this negligence action plaintiffs Murdochs appeal from a final judgment entered pursuant to defendant’s motion for judgment in accordance with its previous motion for directed verdict The Mur-dochs in their complaint attempted to allege negligence on the part of the City of Jacksonville Beach upon the theory that when the street level was lowered, the City was negligent in allowing the sidewalk to remain nine inches higher than the new curbing, which formed part of the one step between the sidewalk and the street level. The step was clearly visible, and a yellow "safety stripe” was painted on the edge of the sidewalk. The Murdochs concluded that this constituted a hazardous dropoff knowingly created and maintained by the City for several years and was the proximate cause of Mrs. Murdoch’s injury. There was no proof of any hole, crack or other defect in the sidewalk which caused Mrs. Murdoch to fall. Steps and elevated floor levels are common in public places, and when readily visible do not constitute negligence per se.1 A careful examination of the transcript of testimony fails to reveal any competent evidence of negligence on the part of the City proximately causing the injury suffered by Mrs. Murdoch. The only error committed by the trial judge was his failure to grant the motion for directed verdict at the conclusion of plaintiffs’ case.
The judgment is affirmed.
JOHNSON and SPECTOR, JJ., concur.
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Cited By
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Pensacola Rest. Supply Co., Inc. v. Davison, 266 So. 2d 682 (Fla. 1st DCA 1972)…loor levels in many public places. When these are readily visible, they do not constitute negligence per se on the part of the proprietor. Matson v. Tip Top Grocery Co., Inc., 151 Fla. 247, 9 So. 2d 366 (1942); Murdoch v. City of Jacksonville Beach, 197 So. 2d 845 (Fla.App. 1st, 1967). There is no duty to warn of an obvious condition which is not in itself dangerous. A customer is obligated to exercise a reasonable degree of care for his own safety, which includes observing the obvious and apparent condition…
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Aaron v. Logro Corp., 226 So. 2d 8 (Fla. 3d DCA 1969)…ncealed or latent danger, if danger it was. It was plainly visible and could have been seen by plaintiff if she had been looking, and she said that she wasn’t looking.” * * % ifi >{« % See also: Murdoch v. City of Jacksonville Beach, Fla.App.1967, 197 So. 2d 845, wherein the first district sustained a judgment for a defendant wherein the injured party fell over a raised portion of a sidewalk. In passing, the court said the following: ij; jjfc ‡ “ * * * The step was clearly visible, and a yellow ‘safety st…
Authorities Cited
- Matson v. TIP TOP Grocery Co., Inc., 151 Fla. 247 (Fla. 1942)
- In re Application of Marion E. Sibley to Resign from the Bar of the State of Fla., 151 Fla. 225 (Fla. 1942)
- VAN Horn v. Food Serv. Equip., Inc., 177 So. 2d 528 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965)