Rea v. Media, Middletown, Aston & Chester Electric Railway Co.

Citations

• 221 Pa. 129
• 70 A. 554
• 1908 Pa. LEXIS 447

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Street railways — Passenger—Getting on car — Contributory negligence — Case for fury.</p> <p>In a suit by a passenger for personal injuries against a street railway company, a prima facie case is made for the jury, where the plaintiff testifies that the car had stopped, and she had put her left foot on the step and was reaching with her right hand for the hand rail, when the conductor suddenly started the car, and she was thrown to the ground.</p> <p>In such a case the question of plaintiff’s contributory negligence is for the jury, where the plaintiff testified that while she was in the act of reaching for the hand rail, she saw the conductor standing with his back to her, put his hand up, and she supposed he started the car, but she made no outcry or other effort to attract his attention.</p> <p>Although the Supreme Court may be of the opinion from a consideration of the printed testimony that the weight of the evidence was against a successful plaintiff in an accident case, and that a new trial might have been granted on that ground, yet it will not reverse the judgment, where it appears that the trial judge after having seen and heard the witnesses, considered the question on a rule for a new trial, and concluded that he could not say that there was “ such a preponderance of evidence in favor of the defendant as would warrant the setting aside of the verdict.”</p>