Helen Palsgraft, Respondent v. The Long Island Railroad Company, Appellant Court of Appeals of New York 248 N. Y 339; 162 N.E 99; February 24, 1928 Argued May 29, 1928 Decided Statement of Facts: Helen Palsgraft, Plaintiff, was standing on a railroad platform owned by Long Island Railroad Company, Defendant, after purchasing a ticket to travel to Rockaway Beach. During this time, a train traveling to a different destination stopped at the station. As the train began to prepare for take off, two men attempted to catch the train. One man boarded the train without an issue although the train was already in motion. The second man, while carrying a package, however, boarded the train unable to keep balance. At this time, two guards attempted to help the second man. One guard reached for the man …show more content…
During this act, the second man dropped the package containing fireworks and the contents exploded in the process. As a result from the explosion, scales from the platform fell and struck the Plaintiff passenger. The Plaintiff passenger was injured as a result of the scales and brought a personal injury lawsuit against the Defendant railroad for negligence. The Appellate Division affirmed the decision and entered a judgment in favor of the Plaintiff passenger. The Defendant railroad appealed the trial courts decision. Upon appeal, the Court of Appeals of New York reversed the trial court’s decision due to the Plaintiff passenger’s lack of evidence to support the negligence caused by the Defendant railroad leading to the injuries. The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision under the foreseeability test where it found it unreasonable to hold the Defendant railroad liable for the alleged