Alley v. Chicago

The opinion of the court was delivered by On February 15, 1969, plaintiff Evalena Alley left her house in rural Wabaunsee county to drive to her job in Council Grove. To get to the nearest township road she was required to cross the main line of the Rock Island railroad, which traverses the Alley farm in a general east-west direction. As she crossed she collided with an eastbound train. She suffered injuries requiring eight days of hospitalization and the loss of about two weeks of work; the 1969 Ford which she owned jointly with her husband was totally destroyed. A Wabaunsee county jury awarded her $5,000 for her personal injuries and awarded the Alleys jointly $2,770.40 for the loss of the car. The defendant railroad has appealed, contending among other things that it should have had a dismissal or a directed verdict either at the close of the plaintiff's evidence or at the close of all the evidence. It claims the evidence was insufficient to show a breach of duty on its part and, more importantly, that it demonstrates Mrs. Alley to have been guilty of contributory negligence as a matter of law. Since this court concurs in the latter assertion it is unnecessary to consider the other points raised by the parties.