Coleman v. Boston Elevated Ry. Co.

• Decision Date: 22 May 1924
• Citation: 249 Mass. 155,143 N.E. 819
• Parties: COLEMAN v. BOSTON ELEVATED RY. CO. (two cases).
• Court: United States State Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Supreme Court

249 Mass. 155

143 N.E. 819

COLEMAN

v.BOSTON ELEVATED RY. CO. (two cases).

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Suffolk.

May 22, 1924.

Exceptions from Superior Court, Suffolk County; R. F. Raymond, Judge.

Actions of tort by Phillips B. Coleman, p. p. a., and Alexander Coleman, respectively, against the Boston Elevated Railway Company, for personal injuries. Verdicts for plaintiffs, and defendant brings exceptions. Exceptions sustained, and judgments entered for defendant.

Edward J. Sullivan, of Boston (T. Allen, Jr., of Boston, on the brief), for plaintiffs.

George Hoague, of Boston, for defendant.

CROSBY, J.

The first of these actions is brought by a minor, to recover for personal injuries received by him while alighting from one of the defendant's cars; the second is by his father to recover for medical and other expenses incurred on account of such injuries.

The plaintiff in the first case (hereinafter referred to as the plaintiff), accompanied by his mother, was in the act of alighting from one of the defendant's cars when his shoe became caught between the tread of the lower step and the riser between that step and the one next above, throwing him to the ground and breaking his leg. There was evidence sufficient to warrant a finding that he was in the exercise of due care, and the only question before us is whether there was any evidence of negligence on the part of the defendant.

One Brewster, supervisor of surface car equipment in the employ of the defendant, called as a witness by the plaintiff, testified that the car in question is known as a ‘semicovertible No. 3,’ with manually operated doors; that there were two steps, the bottom one a folding step, and the one above fixed or stationary; that the treads were of hardwood; that the riser or toe guard between the first and second step is made of sheet iron about one-sixteenth of an inch thick. He thus described the mechanism of the steps:

‘There are hangers that come down from the platform of the car with a loop on the end and the edge of the step runs from this loop, and there is a lever connected with the end of the step to the rod which is used in raising or lowering the bottom step. There is a onequarter inch wire spring on this rod, extending about one-half inch on either side of it, the function of which is to keep the step folded in position when it is up. The rod is about one inch in diameter and comes between the step and the toe guard. The bottom edge of the toe guard comes pretty nearly to the upper surface of the step. The rod fills up the space between the step and the toe guard. The distance between the lower edge of the toe guard and the innermost edge of the step disregarding the rod, is about 1 1/2 inches.’

It also appeared that on the back of the toe guard or riser at the bottom edge there was a strip of iron about one inch wide and three-eighths to one-quarter inch thick, which is called a ‘stiffener.’ There was other evidence tending to show that the space between the top of the lower step and the toe guard was from 2 to 3 inches; that it was necessary to have a space of at least 1 1/2 inches between the lower edge of the toe guard and the inner edge of the...