Barone

—Plaintiff-appellant Val Jean Barone (hereafter appellant) appeals from a judgment in Santa Clara County Superior Court in favor of defendant-respondent City of San Jose (hereafter the City) following the court’s order granting the City’s motion for summary judgment in appellant’s action for personal injuries sustained when she fell on a public sidewalk.

On February 11, 1976, appellant was delivering telephone directories to residences in the San Jose area. She was carrying two of the books in front of her while walking down a public sidewalk on Hibiscus Lane in the City of San Jose. The weather was clear and dry that morning and appellant was looking straight ahead. As she was walking forward, she tripped over a crack, which had resulted in one part of the sidewalk being slightly raised, and fell, sustaining injuries.

After taking appellant’s deposition, the City noticed a motion for summary judgment. In support of its motion, the City filed an excerpt from appellant’s deposition, the declaration of its attorney, Philip Young, and copies of photographs of the sidewalk crack which was the subject of controversy. The trial court granted the motion, citing Ness v. City of…