Illinois Central Gulf Railroad v. Travis
106 So. 3d 320
Miss.2012Background
- Mary Travis sued Illinois Central Railroad Company and employees for wrongful death after Michael Travis was killed at the Mileston crossing in Holmes County, Mississippi.
- Trial occurred in October 2009; the jury awarded $6.5 million in damages with 50% fault attributed to Illinois Central and 25% each to Michael Travis and Irby, leading to a $4,875,000 judgment against Illinois Central.
- Illinois Central appealed the denial of its motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV).
- The trial and second trial occurred after remand; the appellate court found the second-trial evidence did not support the verdict.
- Mississippi law at issue includes statute 77-9-225 on horn/bell warning requirements and MUTCD crossbuck standards.
- The court ultimately reversed and rendered, awarding Travis nothing and dismissing the case with prejudice.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court properly denied JNOV | Travis asserts substantial evidence supports the verdict. | Illinois Central argues there was no credible evidence of negligence to support the verdict. | JNOV should have been granted; verdict not supported. |
| Whether the horn pattern and bell evidence support negligence | Pattern of horn use (not just presence) and bell testimony show failure to sound properly. | Horn sounded; no fixed pattern required by law; bell separately irrelevant. | Evidence insufficient to sustain verdict; cross-tab with bell not dispositive. |
| Whether the crossbuck sign and vegetation rendered the crossing unusually dangerous | Crossbuck placement and vegetation obscured view; crossing was unusually dangerous. | Crossbuck complied with MUTCD; vegetation not shown to obstruct view; not unusually dangerous. | No basis to support unusually dangerous crossing; verdict not supported. |
Key Cases Cited
- Illinois Cent. R.R. Co. v. Hawkins, 830 So.2d 1162 (Miss.2002) (de novo JNOV standard; substantial-evidence review)
- Dedeaux Util. Co., Inc. v. City of Gulfport, 63 So.3d 514 (Miss.2011) (law-of-the-case exceptions; clean-slate retrial)
- Moeller v. Am. Guar. & Liab. Ins. Co., 812 So.2d 953 (Miss.2002) (law-of-the-case exceptions; mature consideration)