Autopsy Findings Absolve Railroad of Liability in FELA Action

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Norfolk Southern Railway Co. has been awarded summary judgment on claims that it was responsible for causing a former locomotive engineer's silicosis after autopsy results failed to provide evidence of dust exposure. Eastridge v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., et al., No. 08-78 (E.D. Tenn.).

U.S. District Court Judge Thomas W. Phillips of the Eastern District of Tennessee ruled Nov. 18 that testimony from Norfolk Southern's experts indicated that plaintiff William H. Eastridge died of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis that could not be linked to silica exposure.

Eastridge was a locomotive engineer at Norfolk Southern from 1978 to 2004, …