Borde v. New Orleans & G. N. R.

140 So. 810
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 3, 1932
DocketNo. 964
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 140 So. 810 (Borde v. New Orleans & G. N. R.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Borde v. New Orleans & G. N. R., 140 So. 810 (La. Ct. App. 1932).

Opinion

MOUTON, J.

In this case the district judge rendered the following opinion:

“On December 9, 1929, while working for the defendant in the capacity of a ear repairer, the plaintiff received an injury to his eye which injury necessitated the removal of the eye on the 11th of January, 1930. Plaintiff filed a suit in this court claiming compensation under the workmen’s compensation law of Louisiana which suit bears the docket number 5733. That suit was dismissed by judgment of this court on the ground that at the time of the injury plaintiff was engaged in interstate commerce and therefore the compensation law of the State did not apply, but reserved his rights to bring an action under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (45 USCA §§ 51-59). The present suit is based on the latter act,.
“Plaintiff avers that at the time of the injury he was working on the brake shaft of a railroad car in the yards of the defendant company a.t Bogalusa, Louisiana, which car had been side-tracked on rip track #9 for repairs. He alleges that the injury was caused by particles of rust flying off of the nut holding the brake shaft in place, when he used his hammer and chisel to loosen the nut in order to remove the shaft for repairs. He alleges that the car on which he was working was engaged in interstate commerce at the time of the injury as determined in the previous suit. He alleges that the injury was caused by the failure of the defendant company to furnish him with a safe place in which to work, or safe tools and equipment with which to work, or any protection for his eye to keep the rust particles from flying off and injuring the eye. Defendant admits that plaintiff sustained the injury complained of while working on a freight car engaged in interstate commerce, but denies that it failed to furnish a safe place to work or proper tools with which to work, and avers that plaintiff was afforded a reasonable and safe place to work, and was working with simple tools, not dangerous in themselves, and further that defendant made available to plaintiff all necessary protection to his eye, had he used them; that plaintiff had been in the employ of defendant for a long time and was an experienced car repairer, and had full knowledge of the nature of the work and the ordinary dangers attendant thereon; that plaintiff assumed the risk of his employment, and was negligent in failing to use the protection provided by defendant against the risks and dangers of the employment.
“In addition to the admitted facts and allegations, a reading of the testimony justifies, in my opinion, the following finding of fact:
“(1). The place at which plaintiff was working when injured was the top of an ordinary freight box car, standing on a platform, leaning over the brake shaft which projected some twelve inches above the level of the top of the ear. This was the usual and customary method of removing the brake shaft, and it is not shown that any other or better means could have been reasonably furnished by defendant company on which to do this kind of work.
“(2). Plaintiff had been working for defendant company for over twenty years as car repairer, more or less regularly, and during that time had not used goggles or any other form of protection for his eyes from rust or foreign particles.
“(3). Using a hammer and chisel to loosen ' the nut on the .brake wheel was a common and usual method employed by the car repairers in doing this part of their work, and the hammer and chisel being used by plaintiff at the time was of the usual kind and contained no defects in themselves.
[812]*812“(4). Prior tó the injury received by plaintiff, the defendant company had .not required the car repairers working out on the yards to use goggles to protect their eyes, but did require all their employees to use goggles when working around the emery wheel, and at other places where drills were used, and had posted a bulletin in the usual place in the shops in December 1925, requesting all employees to use goggles in performing work dangerous to the. eyes, and advising that these goggles could be secured from the tool room, upon request, and should be returned to the tool room when 'the work was finished for which they were used.
“(5). None of the car repairers used goggles out on the yards prior to the injury, nor did the foreman insist on the use of goggles when performing the kind of work in which the plaintiff was engaged at the time of the injury, but any employee could have used goggles and would have been furnished with same on request.
“(6). After the injury of plaintiff, the defendant railroad came under the control of the G. M. & N. R. R. Co. and in order to comply with the general rules of that company, all employees were required to obtain goggles and wear them when working in places dangerous to the eyes. Prom that time on the employees of the defendant company were required to sign up for a pair of goggles.
“(7). The Federal Law in regard to certain safety appliances which railroads are' required to furnish for the protection of their employees does not include goggles for car repairers.'
“(8). Plaintiff never requested the defendant company to furnish goggles or other protection for his eyes.
“(9). Por several years prior to the time that plaintiff received the injury to his eye, during which other employees had removed the nuts on the brake wheels in a similar manner as used by plaintiff, without goggles, no serious injury to the eyes had been suffered by any other employee of the defendant company.
“Under this state of facte is the defendant liable for the injury suffered by the plaintiff?
“It may be stated in the beginning-that the above finding of facts shows that, there is no negligence on the part of defendant shown for a failure to furnish a safe place in which to work, nor in the tools — the hammer and chisel — with which he was working. If plaintiff has shown negligence on the part of defendant it must be relative to proper protection for the eyes, that is the failure of the defendant to require its employees, including plaintiff, to wear goggles in repairing brake wheels and other parts of cars. The Federal Safety Appliance Law does not require a railroad company to furnish goggles for its employees. 27 Stat. 531, c. 196; 32 Stat. 943, c 976; 36 Stat. 298, c. 160; 36 Stat. 913, c. 103 (45 USOA § 1 et seq.). Also see testimony of Gary p. 70—
“Q. ‘Are you familiar enough with the federal safety appliance law — federal statute covering safety appliance to say if that is one of them? A. Yes, sir. Q. Does that come under the Federal Statute? A. No sir, it does not.’
“This same witness further testified that his company required the use of these goggles as a matter of protection and not as a requirement of the federal safety appliance law.
“This being the case, the defendant is not prevented from pleading contributory negligence and assumption of risk on the part of plaintiff, as those two defenses wore, abolished by the Federal Employers’ Liability Act of April 22, 1908, §§ 3, 4 (45 USCA §§ 53, 54), where the railroad’s failure to comply with the safety appliance law as enacted by congress contributes to the injury. Seaboard Air Line Ry. v.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
140 So. 810, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/borde-v-new-orleans-g-n-r-lactapp-1932.