Mallett v. Seattle, Renton & Southern Railway Co.

Citations

• 66 Wash. 251
• 119 P. 743
• 1911 Wash. LEXIS 1053

Syllabus

<p>Street Railways — Negligence — Collision with Pedestrian — Contributory Negligence — Question eor Jury. In an action for personal injuries sustained by a pedestrian run down from behind by a street car, the negligence of the defendant and the contributory negligence of tbe plaintiff are for the jury, where it appears that plaintiff in the daytime was lawfully using the street car tracks, there being no sidewalks in the street, that he crossed to the east tracks upon meeting a car on the west tracks, and then looked back where he could see for a distance of nine hundred feet and saw no car approaching, and after going about thirty or forty feet, was struck by a car going at a high rate of speed which gave no alarm in time to enable him to escape; although on the evidence offered by the defendant, the jury might have found that the accident happened in an entirely different way without any fault of the defendant; since plaintiff was not a trespasser and the motorman would not be justified in running him down without warning.</p> <p>Appeal — Review—New Trial — Discretion. The trial court having exercised its discretion to refuse a new trial, the supreme court is not justified in granting a new trial upon conflicting evidence that made a ease for the jury.</p>