Runkle v. Burlington Northern

Appeal is by the plaintiff from a judgment entered in the District Court, Nineteenth Judicial District, Lincoln County. For the reasons hereafter stated we reverse and remand for a new trial.

On March 24, 1976 at about 9:00 p.m., a Burlington Northern freight train and a jeep pickup driven by David Runkle collided at the Third Street crossing in Troy, Montana. Third Street is an asphalt roadway running generally in a north-south direction which crosses the Burlington Northern tracks running in an east-*291west direction. Runkle was driving south to north and the train was proceeding west to east.

Th…