Brown's Admr. v. L. & N. R. R.

44 S.W. 648, 103 Ky. 211, 1898 Ky. LEXIS 50
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedFebruary 19, 1898
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 44 S.W. 648 (Brown's Admr. v. L. & N. R. R.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brown's Admr. v. L. & N. R. R., 44 S.W. 648, 103 Ky. 211, 1898 Ky. LEXIS 50 (Ky. Ct. App. 1898).

Opinion

JUDGE GUFFY

delivered the opinion of the court.

This action was instituted in the Laurel Circuit Court by Robert Brown, administrator of Jas. Brown, against the appellee, seeking to recover a judgment against the appellee for ¡negligently causing the death of said decedent.

It is alleged in substance in the petition that the intestate, Jas. Brown, about the 2d of April, 1895, entered a coach, composing one of defendant’s passenger trains, running north on its road known as the night express, at Corbin, in Whitley county, Kentucky, on his way to the city of Cincinnati. That at the time said Brown entered said train he was intoxicated by the use of spirituous, vinous and malt liquor to such a degree that he was maudlin drunk, and totally helpless, both mentally and physically, in which condition'said Brown remained'until the train reached the depot of the defendant in the town of London, Laurel County, Ky., at which time and place the agents and servants of the defendant, who well knew the then drunken and helpless condition of said James Brown, unlawfully with Willful negli[213]*213gence, by force ejected said James Brown, plaintiff’s intestate, from and off of said car and left him in the dark at night, time about ene o’clock at night, near the track of its railroad, said: agents and servants knowing at the time that the trains operated on said railroad, both freight and passenger trains, would soon thereafter be passing said depot at London, where they left said Brown, and knowing that said Brown was incapable of taking care of and protecting himself from death and injury from passing trains. The plaintiff further states and charges that said Brown, within a short time after he was left near the track of defendant’s road, and within a few hundred feet of where he was left by defendant’s agents, and while he was yet from said intoxication, drunk and unable, mentally and physically, to take care of himself, he wandered onto the track of the defendant’s railroad but a short distance from where he was left by defendant’s agents and servants, and was run over by one of defendant’s engines and trains running south on said road, and cut into pieces and mangled so that he then and there died. All of which was the result of the willful negligence of the agents and servants of the defendant in ejecting said James Brown from the train of the defendant, to the damage of the estate of said James Brown, and to plaintiff as the administrator of said James Brown in the sum of #10,000.

The answer of defendant reads as follows: “The defendant says it is true, as alleged in the petition, that James Brown entered one of its trains at Corbin about the 2d day of April, 1895. It says it does not know what the condition of said Brown was. It denies that at the time said James Brown entered the train at Corbin he was intoxicated by [214]*214the use of spirituous, vinous or malt liquor to such an extent that he was maudlin drunk. It denies that he was totally helpless, either mentally or physically, denies that said Brown remained in such drunken or helpless condition until he ■reached the depot at London, Ky.; it denies that the agents or servants of this defendant, well knowing or knowing at all the then drunken and helpless condition of said James ¡Brown unlawfully or with willful negligence by force or at all ejected plaintiff’s intestate from one of its cars; it denies that it left him in the dark at night, time; denies that it left him near the track of its railroad. It denies that it or its agents or servants ejected said intestate from its, car; denies that it used any force whatever; it denies that its agents or servants well knew or knew at all that the trains of defendant both freight and passenger or either would soon be passing said depot at London; it denies that its agents or servants left said Brown knowing him to be incapable of taking care of or protecting himself from death or injury from passing trains. It denies that said- Brown was in such drunken or helpless condition at all. It denies that within a short time after James Brown was left near the track of defendant’s road, or within a few hundred feet of the place where he was left bjr defendant’s agents or servants or while he was from said intoxicated condition yet drunk, or while mentally or physically unable to take care of himself, wandered on defendant’s track a short distance from where he was left by defendant’s agents or servants, and was run over by one of defendant’s engines and trains; denies that by any wrongful act, or acts of this defendant or its agents or servants the intestate was run over and cut into pieces or [215]*215mangled so that he then and there died; denies that said killing was the result of the willful negligence of the agents or servants of this defendant in ejecting James Brown from the train of defendant. It denies that it has been guilty of any willful or other negligence whatever. It denies that the estate of James Brown or the plaintiff as administrator has been damaged in the sum of $10,000, or any sum, by any wrong of defendants, or at all.

Plaintiff’s amended petition reads as follows: “The plaintiff, Robert Brown, administrator of the estate of James Brown, deceased, for amendment .to his original petition, states that the agents and servants of the defendant, who ejected! plaintiff’s intestate from its trains as alleged in plaintiff’s original petition, wrere the agents and servants -of the defendant in charge of the train from which said James Browm was ejected, and that said agents and servants knew the danger to' which the deceased Browm would be subject to the trains of the defendant, which they knew would be passing the depot at London, Ivy., on the track of defendant’s railroad the place where they, the agents and servants of the defendant in charge of said train willfully and negligently ejected said Brown from said tram, as alleged in plaintiff’s original petition.

Defendant's amended answer and answer to amended petition reads as follows: The defendant for answer to the amended petition and for amendment, to its original answer says that it denies that its agents or servants in charge of its train knew that James Brown, the intestate, would be subjected to any danger from its trains passing the depot at London, when he left defendant’s train at that point, or [216]*216when they left said Brown at that depot. Defendant denies that its said agents or servants willfully or negligently ejected said Brown from the train. Defendant denies that it has knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief that when said Brown entered its train at Corbin he was on his way to Cincinnati, Ohio. Defendant denies that wffed said Brown entered its train at Corbin he was intoxicated to such a degree that he was maudlin drunk or that he was totally helpless or helpless at all, either physically or mentally. Defendant' denies that he was totally helpless or helpless at all, either physically or mentally, when its train reached its depot at London, and denies that they or any of them ejected him at London from its train. Defendant denies that said Brown was incapable of taking care of or protecting- himself when he was left at London from its trains, and denies that he was either mentally or physically incapable of taking care of himself when he got on to defendant’s railroad track after the train on which he had been carried passed that station.

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Bluebook (online)
44 S.W. 648, 103 Ky. 211, 1898 Ky. LEXIS 50, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/browns-admr-v-l-n-r-r-kyctapp-1898.