Brief Factual Summary: On July 2, 2014, plaintiff, a retired 73-year-old male, exited a Metro-North train at the Southeast train station. Plaintiff then fell onto the platform and suffered a hip and collarbone injury. Plaintiff sued Metro-North Railroad alleging that the M-N conductor negligently and prematurely closed the train door without warning while plaintiff was still exiting the car. Plaintiff further alleged that the closing train door struck him in the back and propelled him onto the platform. We claimed that the train door did not hit plaintiff, and that he fell onto the platform on his own. Plaintiff was placed in an ambulance and transported to Putnam County Hospital, where X-rays confirmed a fractured left clavicle and an intertrochanteric fracture of his left hip. Within a week of his fall, plaintiff had open reduction internal fixation surgery on the hip. On July 9, plaintiff was transferred to Livingston Hills Nursing and Rehab Center in Hudson. Plaintiff claimed he required the use of a cane or crutches for three months after his fall. Years after the accident, he still had a limp and lost range of motion in his left hip. On July 26, 2017, the jury rendered a verdict in favor of Metro-North on liability.
Charles Olbricht v. Metro-North Railroad – Index No.: 2427/2014 – Putnam County Supreme