Koch v. Norris Public Power Dist.
Nebraska Court of Appeals
632 N.W.2d 391 (2001)
- Written by Rose VanHofwegen, JD
Facts
On a sunny, windy day, a downed power line started a fire that burned about 86 acres of Verdell and Priscilla Koch’s (plaintiffs’) cornfield. The Kochs sued the owner of the line, Norris Public Power District (defendant), under a theory of res ipsa loquitur, which infers negligence based on circumstantial evidence. A Norris engineer conceded that power lines did not usually fall without some negligence or extreme weather. Norris employees retrieved the fallen section of line for testing after tossing it in a Dumpster. Supposedly the testing destroyed the line, which Norris claimed was smoky and burnt from the fire. Norris speculated that hunters or vandals must have shot down the line, as they were known to shoot at power lines in the area and had done so 11 miles north of the Kochs’ farm a month before trial. The trial court granted a directed for verdict for Norris, reasoning that res ipsa loquitur did not apply because the Kochs did not disprove that someone else caused the power line to fall. The Kochs appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Hannon, J.)
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