Thompson v. Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad

Plaintiff, Tyrone Thompson, appeals from the jury’s verdict in favor of defendant Union Pacific Railroad Company (Union Pacific) on plaintiff’s negligence complaint. On appeal, plaintiff contends the circuit court erred in: (1) granting summary judgment, on the basis of federal preemption, against plaintiff on count II of plaintiffs amended complaint; and (2) restricting his counsel’s attempts to explain to the jury one of the verdict forms. We affirm.

On November 13, 1996, a commuter train operated by Union Pacific struck a blue Oldsmobile Cutlass driven by plaintiff at the Ninth Avenue…