{
  "id": 1594007,
  "name": "Betty A. Ramseyer, Individually, and as Administrator of the Estate of Beulah Rill Miller, Deceased, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Illinois Central Railroad Company, a Corporation, Defendant-Petitioner",
  "name_abbreviation": "Ramseyer v. Illinois Central Railroad",
  "decision_date": "1969-05-01",
  "docket_number": "Gen. No. 53,216",
  "first_page": "95",
  "last_page": "98",
  "citations": [
    {
      "type": "official",
      "cite": "110 Ill. App. 2d 95"
    }
  ],
  "court": {
    "name_abbreviation": "Ill. App. Ct.",
    "id": 8837,
    "name": "Illinois Appellate Court"
  },
  "jurisdiction": {
    "id": 29,
    "name_long": "Illinois",
    "name": "Ill."
  },
  "cites_to": [
    {
      "cite": "121 NE2d 348",
      "category": "reporters:state_regional",
      "reporter": "N.E.2d",
      "opinion_index": 0
    },
    {
      "cite": "3 Ill App2d 223",
      "category": "reporters:state",
      "reporter": "Ill. App. 2d",
      "case_ids": [
        5129926
      ],
      "opinion_index": 0,
      "case_paths": [
        "/ill-app-2d/3/0223-01"
      ]
    },
    {
      "cite": "203 NE2d 460",
      "category": "reporters:state_regional",
      "reporter": "N.E.2d",
      "opinion_index": 0
    },
    {
      "cite": "54 Ill App2d 111",
      "category": "reporters:state",
      "reporter": "Ill. App. 2d",
      "case_ids": [
        5282844
      ],
      "opinion_index": 0,
      "case_paths": [
        "/ill-app-2d/54/0111-01"
      ]
    },
    {
      "cite": "240 NE2d 358",
      "category": "reporters:state_regional",
      "reporter": "N.E.2d",
      "opinion_index": 0
    },
    {
      "cite": "98 Ill App2d 380",
      "category": "reporters:state",
      "reporter": "Ill. App. 2d",
      "case_ids": [
        2647045
      ],
      "opinion_index": 0,
      "case_paths": [
        "/ill-app-2d/98/0380-01"
      ]
    },
    {
      "cite": "199 NE2d 618",
      "category": "reporters:state_regional",
      "reporter": "N.E.2d",
      "opinion_index": 0
    },
    {
      "cite": "49 Ill App2d 354",
      "category": "reporters:state",
      "reporter": "Ill. App. 2d",
      "case_ids": [
        5273370
      ],
      "opinion_index": 0,
      "case_paths": [
        "/ill-app-2d/49/0354-01"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "analysis": {
    "cardinality": 297,
    "char_count": 4003,
    "ocr_confidence": 0.599,
    "pagerank": {
      "raw": 1.557659245448893e-07,
      "percentile": 0.6763784297849025
    },
    "sha256": "a8b7a635a5780023b9c4ebe3929478c22412affd1ad64668cee4517dc54f8a6d",
    "simhash": "1:400814703a5de5b9",
    "word_count": 650
  },
  "last_updated": "2023-07-14T16:55:40.138507+00:00",
  "provenance": {
    "date_added": "2019-08-29",
    "source": "Harvard",
    "batch": "2018"
  },
  "casebody": {
    "judges": [],
    "parties": [
      "Betty A. Ramseyer, Individually, and as Administrator of the Estate of Beulah Rill Miller, Deceased, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Illinois Central Railroad Company, a Corporation, Defendant-Petitioner."
    ],
    "opinions": [
      {
        "text": "MR. PRESIDING JUSTICE SULLIVAN\ndelivered the opinion of the court.\nThis is a petition for leave to appeal from the trial court\u2019s order granting a new trial in a wrongful death action for damages due to the defendant\u2019s alleged negligent operation of its railroad. The jury returned a verdict in favor of the defendant, but upon the plaintiff\u2019s motion the trial court vacated its judgment on the verdict and granted a new trial.\nIt is well established that a motion for a new trial is addressed to the discretion of the trial judge, and his judgment will not be reversed except for a clear abuse of discretion which must affirmatively appear in the record. (Potter v. Ace Auto Parts & Wreckers, Inc., 49 Ill App2d 354, 199 NE2d 618.) In granting a new trial, the trial judge emphasized that in view of the very close factual issues presented in the case, the defendant\u2019s failure to offer proof of the allegedly inconsistent statements made by a key plaintiff\u2019s witness, after having laid the foundation to impeach, prejudiced the plaintiff\u2019s case thereby necessitating a new trial.\nThe following cross-examination of the plaintiff\u2019s only occurrence witness, Lawrence Swislow, was conducted by defense counsel in an apparent attempt to impeach the witness\u2019s direct testimony which indicated that the decedent was within the boundaries of the pedestrian crosswalk when she was struck by the defendant\u2019s train:\n\u201cQ. Mr. Swislow, isn\u2019t it a fact that you told an Illinois Central employee that you saw the deceased walk southeast across Jeffery and that she was going around the south pedestrian gate?\n\u201cA. I could not truthfully say that because I do not remember the exact \u2014 whether or not if I had the conversation.\n\u201cQ. But did you have a conversation?\n\u201cA. I remember talking to an employee of the Illinois Central.\n\u201cQ. Do you remember that you shouted to the lady that you saw in danger and that you shouted to her?\n\u201cA. No, I did not.\u201d\nThis form of cross-examination was strenuously objected to by the plaintiff, and the trial judge only allowed such impeachment attempts after defense counsel assured him in open court and in the presence of the jury that the defense would produce a witness to support the attempted impeachment.\nThe defendant produced Edwin Dahlin, a conductor on the train which struck the deceased, whose testimony in no way impeached Swislow. In addition, the jury did not know that the witness Dahlin was the employee of the Illinois Central referred to during the attempted impeachment of Lawrence Swislow. The defendant\u2019s entire case lacked any evidence to support the alleged impeaching and inconsistent statements of Swislow despite the earlier assurances of the defendant that such evidence would be forthcoming.\nWe agree with the trial judge\u2019s conclusion that, under the facts at bar, it was highly prejudicial for the defendant, having laid the foundation for impeachment of a key plaintiff\u2019s witness on a material issue of the deceased\u2019s exercise of care, to fail to offer proof of the prior inconsistent statements. (See: Reese v. Crain, 98 Ill App2d 380, 240 NE2d 358; Schoolfield v. Witkowski, 54 Ill App2d 111, 203 NE2d 460; Miller v. Chicago Transit Authority, 3 Ill App2d 223, 121 NE2d 348.) The fact that defense counsel acted in good faith when he made his assurances to the court in no way negates the prejudicial effect of such an error. Accordingly, the defendant\u2019s petition for leave to appeal is denied.\nLeave to appeal denied.\nSCHWARTZ and DEMPSEY, JJ., concur.",
        "type": "majority",
        "author": "MR. PRESIDING JUSTICE SULLIVAN"
      }
    ],
    "attorneys": [
      "Ruttenberg & Ruttenberg, of Chicago (David W. Ruttenberg and Marvin H. Ruttenberg, of counsel), for plaintiff-respondent.",
      "John W. Foster, Lawrence Lawless, and Philip Seely, of Chicago (Robert Mitten, of counsel), for defendant-petitioner."
    ],
    "corrections": "",
    "head_matter": "Betty A. Ramseyer, Individually, and as Administrator of the Estate of Beulah Rill Miller, Deceased, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Illinois Central Railroad Company, a Corporation, Defendant-Petitioner.\nGen. No. 53,216.\nFirst District, Third Division.\nMay 1, 1969.\nRuttenberg & Ruttenberg, of Chicago (David W. Ruttenberg and Marvin H. Ruttenberg, of counsel), for plaintiff-respondent.\nJohn W. Foster, Lawrence Lawless, and Philip Seely, of Chicago (Robert Mitten, of counsel), for defendant-petitioner."
  },
  "file_name": "0095-01",
  "first_page_order": 101,
  "last_page_order": 104
}