Clark Byers v. Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation

JOHN W. PECK, Circuit Judge.

This is a personal injury action arising out of an accident in which the plaintiff-appellant was struck by an arc from the power lines of the defendant-appellee as he was working on a roadside billboard sign. The jury in the trial court found the defendant guilty of negligence for the improper maintenance of its lines, but found Byers guilty of contributory negligence in failing to exercise proper care for his own safety. In Tennessee such contributory negligence is a complete bar to recovery. The sole issue on appeal is whether the District Court erred in refusing…