Cook v. Lusk
Cook v. Lusk
Opinion of the Court
— The plaintiff, a woman, recovered a judgment against the defendants for $750, of which $250 was allowed as actual and $500 as punitive damages. Her petition counted on mistreatment of her by the conductor in charge of one of defendants ’ trains while she was a passenger thereon. The defendants are the admitted receivers for the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad Company.
Plaintiff testified that' she is a married woman, residing at Holland, in Pemiscot county, Missouri, and that she purchased a ticket from the defendants’ agent at that place entitling her to first-class passage to Lilboum, Mo., paying him eighty-four cents. She had with her a baby and a suit case. She boarded one of defendants’ trains and took a seat beside Mrs. S. E. Redman, a woman who lived in Arkansas and who was known to the plaintiff. She testified that soon after the train left Holland, going north, a conductor came along, raised the window by the seat where she sat, took up her ticket, and went on; that after the train had passed the next station the conductor again demanded her ticket; that she informed him he had al
Plaintiff testified that owing to the gruff manner in which the conductor talked to her, calling her a liar three times-, making her pay the second fare, and threatening to put her off the train, greatly excited and unnerved her and that on account thereof she was too weak to carry her grip when she reached her destination and that she remained nervous for a week — did not go to bed but felt bad and was sick.
The conductor as a witness for the defendants testified that plaintiff never gave him a ticket at all, and denied that he was abusive or insulting in any way or that he threatened to put her off the train. Defendants also called as witnesses a Mrs. Comer, wife of one of the railroad employees, and her sister, Mrs. Walker. They were several seats away from the plaintiff on the car and testified that they heard no such conversation between plaintiff and the conductor as detailed by plaintiff and Mrs. Redman. Another witness for the defendants (Mrs. Green) who was on the car heard nothing of the trouble. The testimony of these three ladies introduced as defendants ’ witnesses can have but little weight as they are shown to have paid but slight attention to what was transpiring between the conductor and plaintiff; their testimony is merely negative in character. [See Quinley v. Springfield Traction Co., 180 Mo. App. 287, 165 S. W. 346, 349.]
There being nothing unreasonable in the statement of plaintiff and her witnesses as to what occurred we are required to treat the finding of the jury thereon as binding.
Complaint is made that instruction numbered 1 given for plaintiff allowed a -recovery for fright when there was no evidence that the plaintiff was frightened. The instruction required the jury to find that plaintiff “was caused to and did suffer humiliation, became-abashed, unnerved and frightened, and was caused to and did suffer mental anguish, humiliation and nervousness and was damaged thereby.” There was sufficient evidence in our judgment to support a finding that plaintiff was frightened, when the conduct of the conductor toward the _ unattended woman with her baby is taken into considératio'n. Still, there was sufficient evidence of humiliation and mental anguish, and the finding that plaintiff was frightened could not materially affect the defendants — as the in
Error is assigned in that the second instruction for plaintiff did not limit the amount of punitive damages to the amount claimed in the petition. The verdict was for a less amount than that claimed in the petition; hence, no reversible error on this score. [Williamson v. Railroad, 133 Mo. App. 375, 113 S. W. 239; Sampson v. Railroad, 156 Mo. App. 419, 138 S. W. 98.]
What has been said disposes of the assignment of error as to. the refusal of defendants ’ instruction numbered 2..
It is contended that the verdict is excessive. The $250 allowed by the jury as actual damages was for the humiliation suffered by the plaintiff in the presence of an acquaintance and a number of strangers. The evidence is that she was so unnerved that she was sick for a week. The verdict is not so excessive as to call for our interference. The smart money allowed is not out of proportion in amount with allowances approved as will be seen by reading the cases hereinbefore cited in which punitive damages were allowed passengers.
There is no reversible error in the admission of testimony.
The judgment is affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.