Holz v. Burlington Northern Railroad

— Burlington Northern appeals a wrongful death judgment, contending the jury should have known the decedent lacked a motorcycle endorsement, that he failed to complete a traffic safety education course, and that, at the time of his death, he violated a statute permitting only holders of a motorcycle endorsement to ride without supervision or at night.

Facts

On the night of September 17, 1987, 16-year-old Jody Holz unwittingly drove his 750 cc motorcycle into a black railroad tank car straddling an unlit Whatcom County road. He broke his neck and died. His parents and the administrator of his…