Young v. St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway Co.
Supreme Court of Missouri
Appeal from Jasper Circuit Court. — Hon. Hugh Dabbs, Judge. (1) Section 2864 of the Damage Act, as amended in Laws 1905, pp. 136-7, is unconstitutional, because in actions against railroad companies it delegates to the jury the fixing of a penalty, on a sliding scale, at any sum from $2000 to $10,000, within their discretion, without furnishing any lawful basis for such discretion.
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Appeal from Jasper Circuit Court. — Hon. Hugh Dabbs, Judge. (1) Section 2864 of the Damage Act, as amended in Laws 1905, pp. 136-7, is unconstitutional, because in actions against railroad companies it delegates to the jury the fixing of a penalty, on a sliding scale, at any sum from $2000 to $10,000, within their discretion, without furnishing any lawful basis for such discretion. It delegates to the jury a legislative or judicial function and furnishes a special unreasonable basis of recovery as against railroads, thus denying them the equal protection and benefit of the laws, in violation…
1Opinion of the CourtValliant, J.
This suit was instituted, by Pansey Middleton, in her lifetime, then a minor, suing by her curator; she recovered a judgment for five thousand dollars against the defendant for the death of her father, whose death she alleged was caused by the negligence of the servants of the defendant railroad company in operating one of its trains. After the cause was brought to this court by defendant’s appeal, the plaintiff died and the cause was revived *315here to be prosecuted in tbe name of A. G. Young, tbe administrator of her estate.
Tbe petition states that tbe plaintiff’s father was in tbe service of…
2Cases cited5 opinions
- Eppstein v. Missouri Pacific Railway Co.Supreme Court of Missouri · 1906
- Louisville & Nashville Railroad v. CommonwealthCourt of Appeals of Kentucky · 1896
- Ex parte DusenberrySupreme Court of Missouri · 1888
- Hinzeman v. Missouri Pacific Railway Co.Supreme Court of Missouri · 1904
- Reyburn v. Missouri Pacific Railway Co.Supreme Court of Missouri · 1905
3Cited by35 opinions
- Warner v. Southwestern Bell Telephone CompanySupreme Court of Missouri · 1968
- Burge v. Wabash RailroadSupreme Court of Missouri · 1912
- Chandler v. Chicago & Alton RailroadSupreme Court of Missouri · 1913
- Nichols v. BresnahanSupreme Court of Missouri · 1948
- Grier v. Kansas City, Clay County & St. Joseph Railway Co.Supreme Court of Missouri · 1921
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