Ledbetter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad

12 S.W.3d 139, 1999 Tex. App. LEXIS 9626, 1999 WL 1279135
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 30, 1999
DocketNo. 12-99-00041-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 12 S.W.3d 139 (Ledbetter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ledbetter v. Missouri Pacific Railroad, 12 S.W.3d 139, 1999 Tex. App. LEXIS 9626, 1999 WL 1279135 (Tex. Ct. App. 1999).

Opinion

HADDEN, Justice.

Barry R. Ledbetter (“Ledbetter”) sued his employer Missouri Pacific Railroad Company d/b/a Union Pacific Railroad Company (“Union Pacific”) under the Federal Employer’s Liability Act, 45 U.S.C.A. § 51 et seq. (West 1986), for alleged back injuries he suffered in two separate work-related accidents. The first accident occurred on October 9, 1993. The second occurred on September 25, 1995, when Ledbetter tripped over an air box cover in Union Pacific’s San Antonio rail yard. At trial, the jury found that Ledbetter was negligent and that Union Pacific was not negligent with regard to the first accident.1 However, the jury found that both Ledbet-ter and Union Pacific were negligent with regard to the second accident. The jury apportioned 10% of the responsibility for the second accident to Union Pacific and 90% to Ledbetter. Finally, the jury assessed Ledbetter’s total damages at $200,-000.00. Pursuant to 45 U.S.C.A. § 53 (West 1986), the trial court reduced the damages awarded by the jury by the percentage of responsibility attributed to the Plaintiff. Thus, the trial court entered a final judgment awarding total damages of $20,000.00 to Ledbetter. In one issue presented,2 Ledbetter argues that the trial court erred in excluding testimony he was prepared to present concerning alleged violations of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) standards by Union Pacific. We will affirm.

Factual Background

Ledbetter worked as a car man for Union Pacific. Basically, a car man inspects and repairs railroad cars. On September 25, 1995, Ledbetter was working along the repair or “rip” tracks in the San Antonio rail yard. The evidence presented at trial showed that this is a large, open area of railroad tracks where engines and cars are brought in to be repaired. A shed covers this area to protect the workers from weather, but both ends of this area are open so that the trains can move in and out along the tracks. There are eight covered air boxes in the rip track area, four boxes for each of the two tracks. These boxes provide below ground access to air hoses, which are used to supply air jacks and to do brake tests on the ears. The boxes themselves are approximately 11” square and are elevated about three-eighths to one-half inch above the floor. At trial, Ledbetter contended that as he walked along the concrete floor of the rip track facility, he tripped over one of the elevated air box covers sustaining an injury to his back. Although the exact distance from the air box cover to the track does not appear in the record, photographs of the rip track area introduced at trial showed that the distance between the two was minimal, perhaps as little as a few feet.

Applicability op OSHA Standards

Prior to trial, Union Pacific filed a motion in limine to exclude any evidence pertaining to OSHA standards or alleged violations of OSHA standards. Union Pacific contended that OSHA standards did not apply in this case because they have been displaced by the Federal Railroad Administration (“FRA”). The trial court granted Union Pacific’s request and sustained Union Pacific’s objection to such evidence at trial.

During his case-in-chief, Ledbetter made a bill of exception containing the deposition testimony of a safety expert, Dr. David Anderson (“Anderson”), who is currently working an educator providing [142]*142instruction to employers concerning OSHA regulations. Anderson testified that with regard to walking areas in the work place, OSHA regulations require “a clear access, a well-marked aisle, and ... even walking surfaces.... ” He also testified that there is a mandatory requirement under OSHA that “aisles and passages” be delineated at industrial sites. Further, Anderson testified that he did not observe “designated walkways and passages” at Union Pacific’s San Antonio Rail Yard when he inspected it. When asked whether this condition violated “OSHA 1910.22,” Anderson testified that it was possible. Finally, Anderson testified that Union Pacific violated OSHA standards with regard to “clear walking surfaces” by failing to have the air box cover fit flush to the ground. Ledbetter contends that this testimony from Anderson demonstrated that: (1) OSHA regulations constituted a standard of care applicable to Union Pacific and (2) Union Pacific’s violation of the standard of care constituted evidence of negligence on the part of Union Pacific which should have been considered by the jury.

Ledbetter also made a bill of exception consisting of the deposition testimony of Preston Sargent, who is the Manager of Special Projects (Mechanical) for Union Pacific. Sargent testified that Union Pacific typically follows OSHA guidelines with regard to the painting of certain areas or objects for safety. He testified that in a rip track facility, pursuant to OSHA guidelines, Union Pacific would probably mark walkways and areas where there are “differential elevations.” With regard to air boxes, Sargent testified that the engineering department of Union Pacific would probably ask that “a stripe be put around the perimeter.” Finally, he testified that OSHA regulations provide a scheme for color coding different items and that, within this scheme, yellow is used as a “safety highlight.” Ledbetter argues that this testimony from Sargent constituted an admission against the interest of Union Pacific in that OSHA regulations did apply to the condition which caused Ledbetter’s injury. Further, Ledbetter asserts that this testimony showed that Union Pacific’s noncompliance with OSHA regulations constituted evidence of negligence which should have been considered by the jury.

The admission and exclusion of evidence is a matter within the trial court’s sound discretion. See City of Brownsville v. Alvarado, 897 S.W.2d 750, 753 (Tex.1995). A trial court abuses its discretion when it rules “without regard to any guiding rules or principles.” Id. at 754. An appellate court must uphold a trial judge’s evidentiary ruling if there is any basis for the ruling. See State Bar of Texas v. Evans, 774 S.W.2d 656, 658 n. 5 (Tex.1989). To obtain reversal of a judgment based on the erroneous admission or exclusion of evidence, an appellant must show that the trial court’s ruling was in error and that the error probably caused the rendition of an improper judgment. See Tex.R.App. P. 44.1(a)(1); MeCraw v. Maris, 828 S.W.2d 756, 757 (Tex.1992). To successfully challenge an evidentiary ruling, an appellant must usually show that the judgment turns on the particular excluded evidence. See City of Brownsville, 897 S.W.2d at 753-54. An appellate court must review the entire record to determine whether the case turns on the excluded evidence. Id. at 754.

Ledbetter contends that the trial court erred in excluding the above-referenced testimony of Anderson and Sargent because a FRA policy statement (“the policy statement”) “specifically holds that OSHA regulations ... concerning wálking and working surfaces are ... applicable to the railroads.” The policy statement provides that “OSHA regulations concerning working surfaces deal' with such matters as ladders, stairways, platforms, scaffolds and floor openings. Generally, these regulations are applicable in railroad offices, shops and other fixed work places.” 43 Fed.Reg. 10583, 10587 (1978).

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12 S.W.3d 139, 1999 Tex. App. LEXIS 9626, 1999 WL 1279135, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ledbetter-v-missouri-pacific-railroad-texapp-1999.