Commonwealth v. Inhabitants of Wilmington
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Indictment on the Gen. Sts. o. 44, § 21, for the loss of the life of Stephen Sargent on June 19, 1866, for want of suitable rails on the west side of a highway which the defendants were bound to keep in due repair.
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Indictment on the Gen. Sts. o. 44, § 21, for the loss of the life of Stephen Sargent on June 19, 1866, for want of suitable rails on the west side of a highway which the defendants were bound to keep in due repair. At the trial in the superior court in Middlesex, before Brigham, C. J., it appeared that the highway ran near a pond in Wilmington, called Silver Lake ; and that for several rods the pond “ borders the westerly line of the highway, and at times, when high, covers some portion of the westerly half of it, and was not fenced or inclosed,” except that, many years before 1866, “ the…
1Opinion of the CourtWells, J.
This indictment is found under the Gen. Sts. c. 44, § 21, upon the charge that the life of the plaintiff’s intestate was lost by reason of a defect in, or “ want of suitable rails on ” the way upon which he was travelling. We find nothing in the case to sustain that proposition, except the fact that his life was lost in a manner and under circumstances which render it • probable that a substantial railing might have prevented the casualty.
But the fact that an injury has been sustained, by reason of a certain condition of the highway, is not sufficient to establish that condition as a defect…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Macomber v. City of TauntonMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1868
3Cited by6 opinions
- Puffer v. Inhabitants of OrangeMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1877
- Moore v. Town of AmesburyMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1929
- Thompson v. City of BostonMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1912
- Mobus v. Town of WaitsfieldSupreme Court of Vermont · 1902
- Vye v. City of MedfordMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1929
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