Summary
In Murray v City of New York (276 App. Div. 765), the plaintiff tripped over a stone fence foundation which extended 4 1/2 inches onto the sidewalk.
Summary of this case from Cruz v. Tr. AuthOpinion
November 7, 1949.
Respondents have recovered a judgment for damages for personal injuries and resulting medical expenses and loss of services, alleged to have resulted from negligence on the part of appellants, in maintaining a stone foundation under a fence surrounding an old school building. Respondents alleged that the accident complained of occurred at a place where, at the corner of the fence, the base stone, or coping, projected upon the public sidewalk of Ryerson Street in the borough of Brooklyn, and that respondent Katherine Murray, a pedestrian, stumbled over the projecting portion of the coping. The evidence adduced discloses that the projection complained of consisted of a stone, octagonal in shape, and four inches high, which extended four and a half inches from the line of the coping of which it was a part, upon the sidewalk of Ryerson Street. The coping and fence were, apparently, constructed to serve a necessary and convenient purpose, in separating a schoolyard from the public highway, and the stone was so placed as to offer no obstruction to pedestrians, except those who might choose to walk along the edge of the coping and practically against the fence erected on it. The coping and fence had been maintained for a considerable number of years. There was no evidence that there had been any previous accident, or any complaint as to the condition alleged to have caused the accident, but on the contrary evidence was produced that there had been no such accident, to the knowledge of appellants. Judgment reversed on the law and the facts, with costs, and complaint dismissed on the law, with costs. In our opinion there was no evidence of negligence upon the part of appellants for the consideration of the jury, and appellants' motions to dismiss and for a directed verdict should have been granted. Nolan, P.J., Carswell, Adel, Sneed and MacCrate, JJ., concur.