Vistica

Plaintiffs appeal from a judgment in favor of defendant, after trial before a jury, in a wrongful death action.

Facts: Plaintiffs are the deceased’s husband, individually, and her minor children by their guardians ad litem, their father and grandmother.

The decedent, Lorraine Vistica, was a mentally ill person. The testimony of witnesses describes her as one who possessed a schizophrenic personality and was paranoid and strongly motivated toward suicide.

On August 5, 1961, while at home, Lorraine stabbed herself in the chest. She was admitted to the psychiatric ward of defendant hospital and there came under the care of Dr. Cartwright. The doctor recognized Lorraine’s potential for self-destruction and ordered that ward personnel observe precautions against her suicide.

She remained at the hospital until September 8, 1961, when she was permitted to go home to spend the daytime hours with *467 her family. She did not make satisfactory progress at home, and while on this schedule engaged in at least one alarming incident that suggested her continued motivation to suicide.

On October 19, 1961, she was readmitted to the hospital for full-time care, and Dr. Cartwright again…