Wantland v. Illinois Central Railroad Company

• Decision Date: 03 December 1956
• Docket Number: No. 11787.,11787.
• Citation: 237 F.2d 921
• Parties: Earl WANTLAND, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

237 F.2d 921 (1956)

Earl WANTLAND, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 11787.

United States Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit.

November 6, 1956.

Rehearing Denied December 3, 1956.

Lawrence Lawless, Herbert J. Deany, Robert S. Kirby, Chicago, Ill., J. H. Wright, Chicago, Ill., of counsel, for appellant.

Robert J. Rafferty, Chicago, Ill., for appellee.

Before FINNEGAN, LINDLEY and SWAIM, Circuit Judges.

SWAIM, Circuit Judge.

This is an action under the Federal Employers' Liability Act, 45 U.S.C.A. § 51 et seq., for damages resulting from injuries sustained by Earl Wantland, an employee of the defendant, Illinois Central Railroad Company.

The jury returned a verdict of $11,000.00 in plaintiff's favor and judgment was entered thereon. The defendant claims as error certain procedural irregularities and the failure of the District Court to grant defendant's motion for a directed verdict or its motion for a new trial.

The plaintiff had been employed by the Railroad for a period of 28 years, and since 1923 he had served exclusively as a brakeman. In 1943 he was promoted to conductor and subsequently alternated as brakeman or conductor depending on his seniority status in competition with co-workers.

On September 13, 1950, plaintiff reported for work at 7:30 P.M. and was assigned as flagman to an extra train at Clinton, Illinois. The train, comprised of a steam engine, approximately 55 empty coal cars and a caboose, was going from Clinton to Cimic, Illinois. The first stop was Lake Fork, Illinois, 26 miles south of Clinton. South of Lake Fork the trackage was a single main line track running in a north-south direction. Immediately east of and parallel to the main line there was a passing track with its north end at the Lake Fork depot and extending in a southerly direction about 80 car lengths. Plaintiff's train went onto this passing track to clear the main line for a scheduled northbound passenger train. Plaintiff left the caboose where he had been riding to inspect the train. After the passenger train had passed plaintiff's train began to move, although he had not boarded it. Plaintiff was standing on the roadbed and when the caboose came up to him he attempted to board it by catching hold of the grab iron on the rear end of the caboose for the purpose of pulling himself up and onto the steps at the rear of the caboose. The attempt was unsuccessful and plaintiff fell, injuring his left shoulder.

The plaintiff was the only witness, other than medical witnesses, who was called on behalf of the plaintiff. He testified that after his train stopped on the passing track he left the caboose where he had been riding with the conductor of the train and proceeded to walk down the west side of the train between the main line and the passing track to inspect the train — "to see if there was anything dragging, or if they the cars had any hot boxes, just a general inspection." This was one of plaintiff's duties as brakeman and flagman on the night in question. He walked approximately 30 to 35 car lengths towards the engine when he observed a red light displayed on a block signal located at the south end of the passing track which was an indication that the passenger train was approaching. Plaintiff then crossed over to the east side of his train for the purpose of inspecting the other side of the train and to remove himself from a position between the passing track and the main line for safety reasons. After reaching the opposite side of the train he proceeded to walk towards the caboose. The passenger train passed and plaintiff's train started to move. At this point plaintiff was about 25 car lengths from the caboose. His train kept picking up speed and when plaintiff attempted to board, the train was travelling approximately 15 to 20 miles per hour. It is standard operating practice that trainmen board moving trains, although plaintiff testified that the usual and customary speed which is maintained when it is known that a man is going to board is 5 to 10 miles per hour. In describing his endeavor to board, plaintiff said: "I was walking along the east side of the train and it looked like it was a reasonably decent place to get on, so when the caboose approached me, I made two or three steps with the train in the direction the train was going to get on, and I caught hold of the grab iron on the corner of the caboose with my left hand, and I had the lantern hanging over my right arm, and as I caught the grab iron, as I made these steps, and my right foot went for the caboose step, and the left foot gave under the soft footing and loose cinders." Plaintiff succeeded in getting both of his feet on the lowest caboose step but was off balance, lost his hold on the grab iron and fell to the ground.

Plaintiff testified that the roadbed on the east side of the passing track where he tried to board the train was low and sloping, and that the cinders on the shoulder were soft and loose.

It is the plaintiff's position that the Railroad, through its agents, was negligent in failing to provide him a safe place to work and in causing the train to travel at a speed which was in excess of the customary and usual boarding speed.

In actions under this Act, the issue of the carrier's negligence is for the jury to determine and it is the jury's function to weigh the contradictory evidence and inferences, judge the credibility of witnesses and draw the ultimate conclusions as to the facts. Wilkerson v. McCarthy, 336 U.S. 53, 69 S. Ct. 413, 93 L.Ed. 497, rehearing denied 336 U.S. 940, 69 S.Ct. 744, 93 L.Ed. 1098. If the jury can find every fact exists which must exist to sustain the plaintiff's case and if the evidence on the issue of negligence is such that reasonable minds might differ on the question of whether the carrier has been negligent, the case is one for the jury. Frizzell v. Wabash R. Co., 8 Cir., 199 F. 2d 153, certiorari denied 344 U.S. 934, 73 S.Ct. 505, 97 L.Ed. 718.

The defendant insists that there was not sufficient evidence to justify submission of this case to the jury.

Plaintiff testified, as noted above, that the roadbed where he attempted to board was low and sloping and that his "left foot gave under the soft footing and loose cinders" on the shoulder at this spot. The Railroad introduced testimony to the effect that the condition of the grade on the east side of the passing track was normal and usual; that it was not defective in any respect; that the slope of the subgrade was just enough to cause rain and moisture to drain away from the track; and that the place where a brakeman would stand in the performance of his duties was level. A factual issue was thus raised and it was for the jury to determine whether the Railroad negligently failed to provide plaintiff with a safe place to work, and whether, in case of negligent failure, it was a proximate cause which contributed in whole or in part to the accident. Fleming v. Kellett, 10 Cir., 167 F.2d 265; Knight v. Chicago & N. W. Ry. Co., 3 Ill.App.2d 502, 123 N.E.2d 128, appeal denied 5 Ill.App.2d vi.

The Railroad urges that plaintiff's conduct in trying to board the train when it was travelling between 15 and 20 miles per hour, in light of plaintiff's testimony that 5 to 10 miles per hour was the usual and customary boarding speed, was the sole, proximate cause of the accident and resulting injuries. It is not negligence per se to board a moving train and this is especially true in view of the fact that it appears to be customary among railroad employees and a normal incident of their...