Vaughan v. Commonwealth

In this case we conclude that there was no error in the allowance by a Superior Court judge of the Commonwealth’s motion for summary judgment, and the subsequent dismissal of the plaintiff’s complaint. The plaintiff alleged that his intestate, while operating a motorcycle on June 19, 1974, on Old Down Road in the Mount Wachusett State Reservation, suffered consciously and died when he collided with a wire which had been negligently strung across the road as a barrier. Some counts of the complaint claimed recovery based on G. L. c. 81, § 18, which imposes liability on the Commonwealth for…