Handel v. New York Rapid Transit Corp.

13 N.E.2d 468 (1938)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Handel (P) was a police officer who had just finished his shift around 3:40 in the morning on West Eighth Street. P was last seen by a fellow officer between 3:40 and 4:00. Around 4:00, a Mrs. Ida Pfeifer at West Third Street was awakened by someone screaming near the elevated train platform. She saw a train come to a stop, and something like a big bundle fell from the side door. The screaming continued. Mrs. Pfeifer got on her robe and ran outside and proceeded to the station and found P wherein P told Mrs. Pfeifer, 'Save me. Help me -why did that conductor close the door on me.' Another witness, Leyton, was also present and would have verified the statement. Police investigating the scene of the accident found a show with laces broken out of it, wedged between the rail and a wooden beam about 1,000 feet distant from the Third Street Station entrance. The toe of the shoe pointed back toward Eighth Street. Apparent shoe marks were also found. P was examined by a doctor and found to be seriously injured and to have sustained numerous broken bones, a ruptured bladder, and concussion of the brain and in profound shock. P died later in the day. The trial court refused to admit the statements of P, and at the close of evidence, the case was dismissed. P appealed.