Indianapolis & Western Railway Co. v. Branson

86 N.E. 834, 172 Ind. 383, 1909 Ind. LEXIS 50
Indiana Supreme Court·Decided January 5, 1909·No. No. 21,161·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinions

Jordan, C. J.

[385] 1. [384] Appellant is an incorporated electric in terurban railway company, seeking to condemn and appropriate a right of way for its railroad through Hendricks county, Indiana. In fact, this cause arises out of the same condemnation proceedings involved in the appeal of the Indianapolis, etc., R. Co. v. Hill (1909), post, 402. Appraisers were apointed to assess the damages resulting to the defendant Rebecca Branson (one of the appellees herein). These appraisers made their report, assessing her damages for the appropriation of real estate at $500. She filed exceptions to this award, and the issue in respect to damages as raised and tendered by her exceptions was submitted to a jury for trial at the January term, 1907, of the Hendricks Circuit Court. After hearing all of the evidence in the case and the instructions of the court, the jury returned a verdict in her favor, assessing damages in the sum of $925 for the lands appropriated by the railway company for its right of way. Thereupon said company unsuccessfully moved for a new trial, assigning in its motion various reasons therefor. The court rendered judgment in favor of defendant Branson for the [385] amount of damages assessed by the jury. The railway company appeals, and assigns as error the overruling of its motion for a new trial. Counsel for appellees interpose virtually the same objections and criticisms in'respect to appellant’s brief and the record in this appeal as they presented and urged in the ease of Indianapolis, etc., R. Co. v. Hill, supra. For the reasons stated in the decision in the latter case, these objections are overruled.

The court on its own motion gave ten instructions to the jury. Appellant’s counsel, at the proper time, tendered to the court, with a request to give the same to the jury, five instructions. The court refused each of these instructions, to which ruling appellant excepted.

The evidence in the case establishes, among others, the following facts: On the south side of appellees’ farm, which embraces seventy-seven acres, and out of which lands appellant’s right of way is appropriated, there is a public highway running east and west. Between this highway and the south line of the farm is located the right of way of the Vandalia Railroad Company, over .which said company has for many years propelled by steam both passenger- and freight-ears. The dwelling-house of appellee Branson, wherein she and her husband and the members of her family reside, is about two hundred feet north of the line of appellant’s railway. The strip of land appropriated is sixty feet wide, and runs east and west, adjacent to and parallel with the Vandalia railroád. Said appellee and the members of her family, in order to reach the highway on the south side of the farm, are compelled to cross appellant’s right of way and also the Vandalia railroad. There is a private crossing over the latter road which appellees maintain and use for the purpose of crossing over the latter road.

Evidence, over the objections of appellant, appears to have been given at the trial by appellee Branson showing how far distant from the before-mentioned crossing trains and cars [386] could be seen approaching, not only over appellant’s road, but also over the road of the Vandalia Railroad Company, and how close a train could be to a person before it could be seen by such person. It was also shown that appellee Bran-son and the members of her family used this crossing many times during each day. Manifestly this evidence was given for no other purpose than to show the danger to which said appellee and the members of her family would be exposed by an approaching car or cars while crossing over the track of appellant’s road in going to and coming from the public highway.

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Indianapolis & Western Railway Co. v. Branson, 86 N.E. 834, 172 Ind. 383, 1909 Ind. LEXIS 50 (Ind. 1909).

86 N.E. 834 (Indianapolis & Western Railway Co. v. Branson) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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