Bracken v. Pennsylvania Railroad

Citations

• 222 Pa. 410
• 71 A. 926
• 1909 Pa. LEXIS 890

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Railroads—Highway crossings — “Stop, look and listen”— Instruction — Harmless error.</p> <p>Where the'defendant in a grade-crossing case asks the trial judge to charge that a person entering upon five tracks of a railroad, must look and listen even after crossing the third track, and the trial judge denies the request, saying that it is not the law that a person is bound to stop, look and listen, between the several tracks, the appellate court will treat the error as harmless, and not reverse the judgment, when it appears that two other points were submitted by the defendant each defining virtually the same standard of duty as was asserted in the first, and both of which were unqualifiedly affirmed.</p> <p>Negligence — Railroads—Grade crossings — Witnesses—Opinions—Expert.</p> <p>Witnesses who are familiar with a particular grade crossing and have frequently seen trains passing upon it, though not experts, may be permitted to testify that so far as they could judge a particular train was running at a rate which was usually maintained at the crossing when the safety gates were closed.</p> <p>Practice, C. P. — Amendments—Parties—Parent and child — Death of child — Addition of mother’s name — Trespass for negligence — Use plairotiff.</p> <p>Where an action in trespass is brought in a father’s name for the negligent killing of a child, the mother’s name may be added by amendment as a party plaintiff, even after the case has been appealed and reversed, and is called for a second trial.</p> <p>Where a judgment in trespass in favor of a father for the death of a child is marked to the use of another, and subsequently the case is reversed, and upon trial the name of the mother is added by amendment, omitting the name of the use plaintiff, the omission is not a ground for claiming surprise, and continuance of the case is properly refused.</p> <p>In such a ease the cause of action is in the legal plaintiffs alone, and the use plaintiff, if he has any rights wh