Thomas M. Toolen and Emily Toolen v. Herman Andrew Kutz

NICHOL, District Judge.

The parents of Kevin Toolen brought suit in the Circuit Court of St. Louis County for the death of their son pursuant to the Missouri wrongful death statute. V.A.M.S. 537.080. Thereafter, the defendant removed the case to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The case was tried and submitted to the jury on the basis of the Missouri Humanitarian Doctrine. From an adverse verdict and denial of a new trial the plaintiffs appeal.

Briefly, the evidence received at trial, viewed in the light most favorable to the jury verdict, shows that…