Barthel v. Illinois Central Gulf Railroad

This action resulted from a collision between an automobile and an Illinois Central Gulf Railroad Company freight train in Springfield at about 3:15 a.m. on November 22, 1969. The automobile crashed into a boxcar that was moving slowly over a railroad crossing. The driver, Robert Crifasi, was killed, as were two of his passengers, Frank Robinson and John Wallace. The other passengers, David Barthel, Scott West and Herbert Rigney, suffered injuries. In the ensuing actions in the circuit court of Sangamon County, which were consolidated for trial, Crifasi’s administrator sued the railroad,…