Opinion
No. 05-04-00850-CV
Opinion Filed July 26, 2005.
On Appeal from the County Court at Law No. 3, Dallas County, Texas, Trial Court Cause No. cc-03-2598-c.
Affirm.
Before Justices O'NEILL, RICHTER, and FRANCIS.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
In this car accident case, appellant Cassie Martinez appeals a judgment granted in favor of appellee Armando Tovar, individually and as next friend for Luz Tovar, Marisa Tovar and Yesenia Tovar, minors. Following a jury trial, the jury found Martinez's negligence proximately caused the Tovars's damages. In a single point of error, Martinez contends there is no evidence she was negligent. For the following reasons, we affirm the trial court's judgment.
On the afternoon of April 8, 2002, Martinez rear-ended a truck driven by Armando Tovar, injuring Tovar and his three children. At the time of the collision, Tovar was stopped at an intersection behind another car that was preparing to make a left hand turn. Tovar had been stopped for about 30 seconds when Martinez hit him from behind. The collision occurred in a school zone in which the speed limit was 20 m.p.h. The jury found Martinez was negligent and that her negligence proximately caused the Tovars's injuries. In a single issue, Martinez contends the trial court erred in denying her motion for instructed verdict because there is no evidence that she was negligent.
An appellant attacking the legal sufficiency of the evidence of an adverse finding on which he did not have the burden of proof must demonstrate that there is no evidence to support the adverse finding. Reagan v. Lyberger, 156 S.W.3d 925, 927 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2005, no pet.). We must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, crediting favorable evidence if reasonable minds could, and disregarding contrary evidence unless reasonable jurors could not. City of Keller v. Wilson, 02-1012, slip op. at 17, 2005 WL 1366509 (Tex. June 10, 2005). If there is more than a scintilla of evidence to support a finding, we will not reverse the trial court's judgment. Reagan, 156 S.W.3d at 927.
The occurrence of an accident is not itself evidence of negligence. Rankin v. Nash-Texas Co, 129 Tex. 396, 105 S.W.2d 195, 199 (Tex. 1937). However, negligence may be inferred from the circumstances in a rear-end collision. Vandyke v. Austin Indep. Sch. Dist., 547 S.W.2d 354, 357 (Tex.Civ.App.-Austin 1977, no writ). In this case, the evidence shows Martinez rear-ended Tovar in a school zone after Tovar had been stopped at an intersection for several seconds. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, we conclude a rational jury could infer appellant was negligent in failing to keep a proper look out. See Vandyke, 547 S.W.2d at 357. We resolve the sole issue against appellant.
We affirm the trial court's judgment.