Rush v. Illinois Cent. R. Co.
Sixth Circuit
399 F.3d 705 (2005)
Nine-year-old Johnathan Rush fell under a moving train operated by Illinois Central Railroad Company (defendant) while playing near it with friends, suffering injuries requiring leg amputation. A railroad employee had interviewed Rush's playmates shortly after the accident, and Rush's mother, Annette Rush (plaintiff), sued the railroad for damages. At trial, a playmate, Doyle Lockett, used the interview transcript to refresh his memory and then gave a full account of the accident from present recollection; on cross-examination, the railroad's lawyer had Lockett read aloud a portion of the transcript stating Rush was hurt trying to jump onto the moving train. The jury found for the railroad, and Annette Rush appealed, arguing Lockett's reading of the transcript was inadmissible.
Whether a written statement recording a witness's past recollection of an event can be read to the jury if the witness can testify based on the witness's present recollection of the event.