A California visitor is suing after a late-December trip to downtown Las Vegas allegedly turned into a nightmare on the tracks. In a negligence lawsuit, he claims a gap in a fence near Main Street Station let him onto active railroad tracks, where a train struck him in December 2023, leading to partial amputations and long-term medical needs.
The lawsuit and the injuries
Ryan Pettway filed his complaint on Dec. 26 in Clark County civil court, naming Boyd Gaming Corp. and Union Pacific Railroad Corp. as defendants, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The complaint states that Pettway, visiting from California, went through an unrepaired hole in a fence next to the tracks near Main Street Station around Dec. 27, 2023, and was then struck by a train. The filing says the collision caused the partial amputation of his right leg and his left foot. Pettway is seeking more than $75,000 for past and future medical care, punitive damages and other losses.
Railroad safety messaging
Union Pacific’s public safety campaigns repeatedly stress that people should only cross tracks at designated crossings, never walk on or near railroad tracks and always assume a train could come from either direction. Its website underscores that tracks are private property and that trains require long distances to stop, guidance the company also carries into its community outreach. More details are available from Union Pacific.
What the complaint alleges and defendants' responses
The lawsuit argues that Boyd failed to properly maintain or repair its fence and claims that visible signs of encampments on the other side should have alerted both companies to a potential hazard. Boyd Gaming told reporters it does not comment on pending litigation, and a Union Pacific spokeswoman told the newspaper the railroad had not yet received the lawsuit and generally does not comment on active litigation, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Local risk, national pattern
Federal rail-safety data show that trespassing on railroad rights-of-way is one of the leading causes of rail-related deaths nationwide. Regulators promote local partnerships, hotspot monitoring and physical barriers as key tools to reduce these cases. The Federal Railroad Administration urges communities and railroads to identify trouble spots and consider fencing, lighting and outreach as part of broader efforts to prevent similar tragedies. More information is available in the agency’s trespass prevention toolkit from the Federal Railroad Administration.
Next steps
The case will move through Clark County civil court, where future filings and any hearings will shape whether the lawsuit proceeds or is resolved before trial. Court records and any public statements from the parties are expected to shed more light on the condition of the fence, any repairs and the timeline leading up to the incident.
