City of St. Petersburg v. Shannon

I am of the view that the lower court was correct in concluding that the amended complaint failed to state a cause of action. Obviously, the plaintiffs alleged facts showing that the defendant negligently operated his motor vehicle; but the question remains as to whether such alleged negligence was shown by allegations of the amended complaint to be the proximate cause of the plaintiffs’ injuries.

In the first count of the amended complaint, it is merely alleged that the defendant was negligent in driving his automobile at a very high rate of speed in an attempt to avoid capture; that the…