Florida East Coast Railway v. Wade

Citations

• 53 Fla. 620

Syllabus

<p>1. When the negligence of an employee of a railroad company ' is a proximate cause of injury to a passenger, the company is liable in damages for such injury sustained by the passenger as should have been foreseen as the probable proximate result of the negligence.</p> <p>2. In order to recover damages in an action against a railroad company for injuries to a passenger because of the negligence of' an employee of the company, there must have been injury sustained by the passenger; there must have been negligence of the employee; such negligence must have been a proximate cause of the injury; there must have been no independent efficient cause intervening between the negligence of the employee and the injury to the passenger; the injury sustained must be such as should have been, contemplated as a probable proximate result of the negligence.</p> <p>3. A proximáte cause Is one that directly causes, or contributes directly to causing the result, without any independent efficient cause intervening between the cause and the result or injury. The particular injury sustained need not have heen in fact contemplated; but the injury sustained must be such as should have been contemplated as a natural and probable proximate result or consequence of the cause or negligence.</p> <p>4. Where a conductor of a railroad train tells a passenger in response to an inquiry that her destination will be reached in twenty minutes, that it is the next stop; and when the train, next stops before reaching her destination the passenger leaves the train from the rear without the knowledge of any of the trainmen, without being told ■ her destination had been reached, and without making inquiry, when she was not sure the twenty minutes had elapsed, when she stepped off the train at two o’clock in the morning into water at a place where no station or lights were in sight, and when the passenger is held to know that she had a right to be informed of the arrival of the train at her destination, a