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Martin v. Evans4/24/1998
[J-136-1997]
Argued September 16, 1997
Appellants Weldon R. Evans (Evans), FORC Company, and Lend-Lease, Inc. request this Court to examine whether the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County (trial court) abused its discretion in granting a new trial based on its determination that the verdict was against the weight of the evidence. This personal injury suit arose from an accident in which Evans' tractor-trailer backed into Appellee Anthony Martin (Martin). The parties presented conflicting testimony relating directly to the issue of Evans' negligence, and the jury concluded that Evans was not negligent. Because the verdict rested on a credibility determination, we hold that the trial court usurped the jury's responsibility by disregarding its finding that Evans was not negligent. Accordingly, we reverse and reinstate the jury's verdict.
FORC Company employed Evans as a truck driver. On May 24, 1989, Evans was driving a tractor-trailer that was forty-five feet long, eight feet wide and thirteen feet, six inches tall. He was proceeding southbound on Interstate 79 when he pulled into the Canonsburg rest stop. Along the left-hand side of the parking lot, there were parallel parking spots for trucks. Evans pulled his truck into what he believed to be the last parallel parking spot in that row. Notes of Testimony (N.T.), May 6, 1994, at 261. Because it was the last spot, he had to angle the cab of the truck to the trailer to maneuver the truck into the space. Id. at 262.
Evans left the truck running, and went to the restrooms. When he returned, he looked in back of the truck before he got into the cab and noticed that no one was parked behind him. N.T. at 264-65. He recorded the stop in his logbook, which took approximately two minutes, then he prepared to back up. N.T. at 265-66. Evans testified that he put the truck into reverse and released both the emergency brake for the cab and the emergency brake for the tractor. When released, the emergency brakes emit a hissing sound that lasts for about two seconds. N.T. at 270-71. He activated his four-way flashers, which are similar to an automobile's hazard lights. Then he looked through the side-view mirrors, but because of the angle of the truck and the length of the trailer, he could not see directly behind him. He reversed the truck " lower than you could walk" until he felt a nudge and saw someone waving at him to stop. N.T. at 272-73. He stopped the truck and through his right-hand rear view mirror he saw someone fall just to the right, rear of his truck. When he got out of his truck to investigate, Evans saw Martin lying on the ground. Id.
Martin and Rochester Steverson (Steverson) were driving southbound on Interstate 79 on May 24, 1989, when they, too, stopped at the Canonsburg rest area. Their truck was an Isuzu box truck that was about twenty feet long and ten feet wide. N.T., May 5, 1994, at 70. The driver of the truck parked approximately seven to ten feet directly behind Evans' tractor-trailer. Martin was either walking or standing between the Isuzu truck and Evans' tractor-trailer when the tractor- trailer began to back into him. He claimed that he tried to get out of the way but was unable to do so. He became pinned between the two vehicles. Once he realized what was happening, Steverson put the Isuzu truck into reverse to free Martin, who fell to the ground. Martin suffered injuries to his right arm and back. As result, Martin brought a negligence action against Evans, his employer FORC Company, Lend- Lease, Inc., and National Rental Systems.
A jury trial took place from May 5, 1994 to May 11, 1994. The parties presented conflicting testimony concerning the circumstances surro
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