Pikesville, Reisterstown & Emory Grove Railroad v. State

Citations

• 88 Md. 563
• 42 A. 214
• 1898 Md. LEXIS 243

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Injury to Conductor from Trolley Pole excepticnmlly near Foot-board of Car— Contributory Negligence — Risks of Employment — Damages Recoverable by Parent for Death of Adult Son.</p> <p>The deceased was a conductor on defendant’s summer car on a suburban electric railway. While standing on the foot-board collecting fares in the course of his duty, he was struck by a pole which supported the trolley wire and killed. The pole which struck deceased was 2 ft. 1 in. from the track while the other poles were located from 2 ft. 5 in. to 2 ft. 9 in. from the track. The foot-board of the car projected 15 in. beyond the rail. When deceased was struck he was leaning in the car receiving the fare from a passenger. It was unsafe to collect fares at that point from the foot-board on the other side of the car. No instructions had been given deceased as to the side from which fares were to be collected, and he was killed on the day he entered defendant’s employment. Held, that the risk of employment arising from the proximity of the poles which were properly located was assumed by the deceased, but he did not assume the risk arising from the dangerous, improper and exceptional location of the pole by which he was struck, of which location he had no knowledge and could not have informed himself by the exercise of reasonable care, and that consequently there was evidence from which it could, be inferred that the injury was caused by the defendant’s negligence in the location of the pole and in not warning deceased of the danger, and that there was no contributory negligence on his part.</p> <p>In an action by the parents to recover damages for the death of their adult son when the plaintiffs have received pecuniary benefit from him since his majority and there was a reasonable probability that the- same would have continued, then the plaintiffs are entitled to recover for such past losses and prospective damages according to the son’s probability of life as the jury ma