Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 127312; Unpublished
Judges Michael J. Kelly, Murphy, and Neff; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Entitlement to No-Fault PIP Benefits: Bodily Injury Requirement [§3105(1)]
Entitlement to PIP Benefits: Arising Out of / Causation Requirement [§3105(1)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous per curiam Opinion, the Court of Appeals affirmed the jury determination that plaintiff was not entitled to no-fault benefits because §3105(1) requires "accidental" bodily injury as a condition for receipt of no-fault benefits, and the jury concluded plaintiff’s heart attack was not accidental.
Plaintiff’s decedent was employed by a railroad company as a "track man" whose duties included repairing and maintaining railroad track. He was called to work in the morning to shut off various switch heaters adjacent to the tracks. His body was later found near the railroad tracks where he was shutting off these heaters. He was found lying face down in the snow behind his truck. The truck, which appeared to be stuck in the snow, was found with the transmission in neutral and the ignition key switched on. Snow was piled up on each side of the truck, as if it had been removed from behind the rear wheels of the truck with a shovel. An autopsy revealed that plaintiff’s decedent had died as a result of a heart attack.
Conflicting evidence was presented at trial as to whether or not the cardiovascular injury resulting in the death of Mr. Powell was due to an "accidental bodily injury" within the meaning of the No-Fault Act. The insurance company contended that Mr. Powell's death was caused by a series of events spanning a considerable period of time (occlusive coronary artery disease), which were not attributable to a single accident. Since the evidence conflicted on this issue, the trial court submitted the issue to the jury, and a jury concluded that the plaintiff’s decedent had not suffered an accidental bodily injury within die scope of §3105(1) of the No-Fault Act.
In upholding the jury's verdict, the Court of Appeals held that a condition precipitated by an accidental injury is not automatically outside the scope of the no-fault act merely because it results in part from a pre-existing condition. The court noted that in McKim v Home Insurance Company, 133 Mich App 694 (1984), it was held that the determination of whether a cardiovascular injury results inevitably from a series of events over an extended period of time is a question of fact. Since conflicting evidence was presented on this issue, the Court of Appeals held that the issue was properly presented to the jury, and the jury's findings were not contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
