Dunning v. New York Central Railroad Co.
| Decision Date | 01 March 1926 |
| Citation | 255 Mass. 211 |
| Parties | JAMES E. DUNNING v. NEW YORK CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Supreme Court |
Present: RUGG, C.
Negligence Assumption of risk, Contributory, Railroad.
In an action by an employee of the United States in the railway mail service against a railroad corporation, which, under contract with the
Federal government supplied mail cars "to be constructed, fitted up, and maintained by" the railroad company, for personal injuries alleged to have been caused by a defective door of a car, there was evidence that, after working in the car, the plaintiff left it for luncheon and closed the door and that he then knew that glass in the door was broken and that there were screws out of a plate which held in place one of the wheels upon which the door slid so that the wheel had worked off the runway; that inspectors of the defendant were about the place "all the time"; that the attention of one of the inspectors, who was seen doing repair work, was called to the condition of the door; that, returning from luncheon the plaintiff, having attempted in vain to open the door, secured assistance and, the door finally moving, his hand was caught and he was injured. Held, that
(1) It was a question of fact, whether the plaintiff knew and appreciated the risk involved and assumed it;
(2) The question of the plaintiff's due care was for the jury; (3) The question, whether the defendant should have discovered the defect and remedied it, was for the jury.
TORT, by one employed in the United States railway mail service, for personal injuries alleged to have been caused by defects in the door of a freight car furnished by the defendant to the Federal government for its railway mail service. Writ dated July 14, 1922.
In the Superior Court, the action was tried before Hall, C.J. Material evidence is described in the opinion. At the close of the evidence, the defendant moved that a verdict be ordered in its favor. The motion was denied. There was a verdict for the plaintiff in the sum of $500. The defendant alleged exceptions.
L.A. Mayberry, (W.F. Levis with him,) for the defendant. T.H. Bilodeau, for the plaintiff.
The plaintiff, employed in the railway mail service of the United States Government, was injured June 25, 1921, while using one of the cars of the defendant, in connection with his work at the Overland Building, in Boston.
Cars for carrying the mail are furnished by the defendant under an Act of Congress of July 28, 1916. The car in question reached Boston June 24, 1921, at 10:35 at night, and was shipped to the Overland Building, reaching there at 1:40 in the morning unloading of the car was finished at 2:30, and the work of reloading began at five o'clock in the morning of June 25. At seven o'clock the plaintiff came on duty and began work. It was a part of his duty to assist in loading the car with mail, and he continued this work until 11:30, when he went to lunch, having closed both of the sliding doors on the side of the car adjoining the platform. One of these doors was defective. Upon returning at twelve o'clock he attempted to open the defective door. The other door of the car was directly over the pit of the escalator, which was in operation. In attempting to open the defective door, the plaintiff took hold of the hasp of the door with his right hand, placing his left hand on the side of the car about an inch from the door. Some of the men in the crew assisted in opening the door and after forcing it, it moved with a quick slam and broken glass in the door injured the plaintiff.
There was evidence that the glass was broken. One witness testified that at seven o'clock in the morning of...
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