McKinney v. Port Townsend & Puget Sound Railway Co.

Citations

• 91 Wash. 387

Syllabus

<p>Railroads — Negligence—Violation of Statute. Failing to sound the bell or whistle continuously until a crossing is reached, as required by Rem. & Bal. Code, § 2528, is negligence as a matter of law.</p> <p>Same — Injury at Crossings — Signals — Negligence — Question for Jury. Whether a bell was rung continuously until a crossing was reached, is a question for the jury where several witnesses testified that they did not hear the bell, although the engineer and fireman and a passenger testified that it was rung.</p> <p>Same — Injury at Crossings — Negligence—Existence of Obstructions. Where a building on the right of way at a crossing obstructs the view of the track, the existence of the obstruction is an element to be taken into consideration and imposes a like degree of care on the company and the public.</p> <p>Same — Injury at Crossings —■ Contributory Negligence — Evidence — Sufficiency. The driver of an automobile is guilty of contributory negligence as a matter of law, in attempting to cross ahead of a train, where he had an unobstructed view of the track for 450 feet, after emerging from behind a building 18 or 20 feet from the track, the train was in view one to three hundred feet away, and he was going at a speed of between ten and fifteen miles an hour up grade on intermediate gear and could have stopped within five feet.</p> <p>Same — Injury at Crossing — Negligence—Last Clear Chance— Evidence — Question eor Jury. Whether a train crew was guilty of negligence in not discovering an automobile stalled on a crossing in time to have stopped the train is a question for the jury, where it appears that the crossing was a dangerous one, that the automobile approached on the side of the fireman, who was not keeping a lookout and did not see it until the engineer applied the brakes, and the train stopped within 136 feet and 18 feet after passing the crossing, and the testimony was in conflict.</p> <p>Same — Injury at Crossing — Last Clear Chance — Instructions. I