Brian Crompton worked as a railroad employee for BNSF Railway. On April 24, 2011, Crompton worked on a locomotive that was to travel from Paducah, Ky., to downstate Centralia, Ill. Crompton was severely injured during the trip from Paducah when he was knocked off the train by a door that…
On Oct. 12, 2004, Clinton Haywood, 47, was working as a Metra signal maintainer. He was unloading a 123-pound joint box from a rat bed sliding platform on the back of a truck when the rat bed unexpectedly slid into the truck. This caused the box to start to drop.…
It is sometimes overlooked in trial practice or not given enough emphasis that the conduct of a defendant must be proved to have proximately caused the injuries or damages claimed in the pleadings. Also, expert testimony must meet the rules of scientific reliability. For example, Gary McCann, an engineer for…
Anthony Williams filed a lawsuit against BNSF Railway Co. under the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) (45 U.S.C. §51) (2006) claiming an employment-related injury. BNSF filed a third-party complaint for contribution and contractual indemnification against third-party defendant Quality Terminal Services (QTS). At the jury trial, a verdict in favor of Williams was…
Cynthia Madden was killed by a BNSF train after her car stalled on the railway crossing in May 2007 near Moline, Illinois. The Madden family brought a lawsuit against the railroad claiming negligence, specifically that the warning indicators for the train approach had all occurred fewer than 20 seconds before the…