Neb. Jury Reaches Defense Verdict for BNSF Railway, Rejects Claims Linking Diesel Exhaust to Lung Cancer

OMAHA, Neb. –– A Nebraska federal jury has reached a defense verdict for BNSF Railway Co., rejecting an employee’s claims that exposure to diesel exhaust caused her to develop lung cancer.

According to a verdict sheet entered on Sept. 3, the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska jury found in favor of BNSF Railway, which argued during trial that the decedent’s history of smoking caused her lung cancer, not exposure to diesel exhaust.

Plaintiff Scott Olson filed the underlying lawsuit on behalf of Cathy Jo Bettisworth, contending that Bettisworth developed lung cancer as a result of her employment …