Christiana v. Rattaro

The mother of an eight-year-old boy sued for damages for his wrongful death. The jury returned a verdict for $10,448.96. The defendant appealed from the judgment and from the order denying the motion for a new trial.

The defendant was engaged in the produce business and was in the habit of allowing small boys to assist him in unloading watermelons from freight cars, compensating them with cracked melons, ice cream and occasionally small sums of money. On the day of the accident defendant was taking deceased and four other small boys to his place of business to help him unload melons. The…