Oregon Short Line R. v. United States

The United States brought this suit on behalf of the Shoshone and Bannock Tribes of Indians to recover from appellant Railroad Companies and their surety damages accruing by reason of the killing of two of the Indians and the injury of a third in a crossing accident occurring within the limits of the Fort Hall Reservation. The *2 appeal, is from a verdict and judgment in favor of the United States.

The suit proceeds under authority of the Act of September 1, 1888, 25 Stat. 452 . The terms of that Act and the nature of the obligations imposed by it are discussed at length in the opinion of this court in United States v. Oregon Short Line Railroad Company, 9 Cir., 113 F.2d 212 , where we held that the Act imposes on the railroad company liability independent of negligence. In the interest of brevity -we shall not again go over the field covered by that decision.

The facts material to relate are these. The accident occurred between 5 and 6 o’clock P.M. on October 29, 1941. Frank Poewee, accompanied by Helen Toane and Ninip Toane — all three of them tribal Indians — was driving a 1934 Chevrolet truck loaded with long poles. The truck proceeded in a southerly direction on a highway…