Court reinstates lawsuit over Blackwell man’s trampling death

(Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, http://www.kansas.com)
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – A wrongful death lawsuit over an Oklahoma man’s 2013 trampling death at a southern Kansas cattle processing facility has been reinstated.
The Wichita Eagle reports that the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the ruling Thursday. The appeals court found that a federal judge overlooked the significance of how fencing and pens were configured in ruling that Creekstone Farms Premium Beef was not liable in the death of 57-year-old Richard Gates, of Blackwell, Oklahoma.
The appellate court found the pen set-up created what the court called a “blind alley” that caused a cow to turn and run at Gates, who was a truck driver. He had just delivered a load of cattle to the Arkansas City, Kansas, facility when he was knocked down and injured.