G. v. Feeley, as Administrator of the Estate of George A. Feeley, Deceased v. Northern Pacific Railway Company, a Corporation

This is an appeal in a grade crossing accident from final judgments for the defendant in accordance with a jury verdict in two actions consolidated for trial. The facts in both cases are the same.

George A. Feeley, 73 years old, was killed on October 26, 1950 when the car he was driving collided with a train of the defendant Northern Pacific Railway Company at a railroad crossing in Sanders, Montana. The administrator of his estate, the appellant here, instituted two actions in the District Court of Montana to recover damages. Jurisdiction in that court was based on diversity of citizenship. 28 U.S.C.A. § 1332 .

At 5:00 P. M., or shortly thereafter, on the day of the accident, the decedent was driving his jeep at 10 to 15 miles per hour in a southerly direction towards the railroad crossing. At the same time the train was approaching this point from the west at about 45 or 50 miles per hour. Both vehicles continued to the place of impact without stopping with the resultant death of Feeley. When the accident occurred it was still daylight with the sun just starting to set, the atmosphere was clear, and there were no obstructions limiting the decedent’s view of the crossing. The…