Axelson v. Great Northern Railway Co.
Axelson v. Great Northern Railway Co.
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff sustained personal injury in a collision on one of defendant’s trains. The jury returned a verdict for $20,000. Defendant appeals. The only claim made on this appeal is that the damages are excessive.
The injury was sustained July 21,1916. The collision was a severe one. The train, on which plaintiff was a passenger, running at the rate of 20 miles an hour, crashed into a freight train standing on the track. Plaintiff was standing and was thrown with his right temple against the wall. He was knocked unconscious. For some time he had spells of unconsciousness. His left arm and leg were paralyzed. He was in a hospital continuously until June 15, 1917. The case was tried in January, 1918. At that time he was suffering partial paralysis of the left arm and leg, suffering some pain, had hallucinations and occasional epileptic fits.
Admittedly plaintiff was at the time of the trial in a distressing condition and wholly incapacitated for any kind of useful service, yet we feel that so large a verdict can be sustained only on the hypothesis that a
Order affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- K. O. AXELSON v. GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY COMPANY
- Status
- Published