Pate v. Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad

Citations

• 52 Wash. 166
• 100 P. 324
• 1909 Wash. LEXIS 1092

Syllabus

<p>Carriers — Passengers—Derailment of Car — Presumption of Negligence. The law» presumes negligence from the breaking of an axle of a passenger coach whereby the car is derailed, and the burden of proof is upon the carrier to rebut the same.</p> <p>Same — Question for Jury — Evidence—Sufficiency. Where a passenger coach is derailed by the breaking of an axle, evidence on the part of the defendant that its roadbed was in good condition, its cars and equipment properly inspected and its train carefully operated, does.not show, as a matter of law, that it exercised due care, where there was other evidence tending to show that the train was operated at a high rate of speed and that the roadbed was rough and uneven.</p> <p>Damages — Personal Injuries — Excessive Verdict. A verdict for $4,000 for personal injuries sustained by a passenger is grossly excessive, and should be reduced to $1,000; where the physical injury was slight, consisting of a grazed shin and a bruise on the knee and on the hip, and pains in the side were claimed to have developed three weeks later, the cause of which was problematic, and there was nothing to warrant a finding of permanent injury.'</p>