Procrastination Is Expensive
Frequently, the costs associated with negligent security litigation reach unnecessary heights. The costs of proper facility and equipment maintenance are deferred for a myriad of reasons and then problems arise when someone is injured. Other claims arise when someone fails to properly supervise or manage business activities.
When the injuries can be attributed to your deferred maintenance or inadequate supervision, the plaintiff’s chances for success in pursuing their allegations escalate. The following are some examples of initially saving a few dollars and then having to pay many times the costs to satisfy litigation awards.
$265,000 — Failure To Repair Roof Gutter
Plaintiff, a 54-year-old nurse, slipped and fell on a patch of ice located on the common sidewalk in front of an office/retail complex owned by the defendant. The plaintiff alleged that the ice condition on the sidewalk was a result of a leak in the gutter that ran along the roofline above the sidewalk and was a chronic problem, of which the defendant knew or should have known. (Sara Austin v. W. Evert Mellema, Case Number 97-CV-415, Douglas County District Court, Colorado, 2000) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $300 — Unnecessary Loss: $264,700
$225,000 — Failure To Remove Ice And Snow - Faulty Drain System
Plaintiff claimed that she was injured when she slipped and fell on exterior stairs at an apartment complex owned and managed by defendants. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants were negligent for failing to remove ice and snow from the stairway and claimed a faulty drain system caused ice to accumulate on the stairs. The plaintiff said that melting snow fell from the roof onto the stairs, where it froze. (Kristin Jarvis v. Brandon Creek Corporation and DEC Management Group, Case Number 99-CV-922, Boulder District Court, Colorado, 2000) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $1,000 — Unnecessary Loss: $224,000
$654,851 — Fall From Ladder
Plaintiff, a truck driver, alleged that he was injured when he fell from a ladder he was using in the docking area of the defendant’s warehouse. The plaintiff alleged that the ladder was bent and in a dangerous condition and the defendant knew of the dangerous condition and failed to repair the ladder. The ladder was attached to a wall of the loading dock, and a rung broke while the plaintiff was using the ladder, causing the plaintiff to fall and sustain injuries to his knee and back. (Martin Salminen v. Piedmont Farms, Inc., Case Number 98-M-1614, United States District Court, District of Colorado, 2000) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $1,000 — Unnecessary Loss: $653,851
$10,000 — Negligent Hiring
Plaintiff alleged that the defendant negligently hired several individuals who had prior criminal records. The plaintiff claimed that the ten individuals stole personal property that belonged to her; she alleged that the individuals unlocked a window, returned to her home after hours and burglarized her home. (Viki Flores v. Two Men and a Truck/Colorado Springs, Case Number 98-CV-1718, El Paso County District Court, Colorado, 2000) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $150 — Unnecessary Loss: $9,850
$117,173 — Hostile Work Environment - Sexual Harassment
Plaintiff alleged her immediate male supervisor engaged in a pattern of inappropriate behavior including verbal comments and touching. The plaintiff said that although she complained and protested, the behavior continued. The defendant did not have a policy regarding sexual harassment or discrimination in the workplace. She was awarded $456,400 in compensatory and punitive damages, which was reduced to $50,000 because of a statutory cap dictated by the number of employees of the defendant company. (Jacqueline Arostigui v. Longmont Automotive Group, LLC, and David Lovato, Case Number 97-WY-2305, United States District Court, District of Colorado, 2001) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $1,000 — Unnecessary Loss: $116,173
$341,000 — Failure To Provide Adequate Security Against Criminal Conduct - Car Jacking and Murder
While in an apartment complex parking lot, Campbell’s automobile was stolen and he was fatally shot by his assailants. It was known that gang members resided in the apartment complex. The plaintiff alleged the defendants negligence included the failure to maintain the property and common areas in a reasonably safe manner, the failure to provide and/or implement reasonable security measures and devices, the failure to make reasonable inquiry and investigation into the history of crime and criminality on or about the premises, the failure to implement adequate policies and procedures to be followed by the defendant’s agents and/or employees relating to security issues, and the failure to remove, eliminate or abate the dangerous conditions present. (Dickinson Arms-REO, LP, v. Campbell, 4 S.W.3d, 333, Texas, 1999) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $2500 — Unnecessary Loss: $338,500
$12,600,000 — Failure to Evict Violent Tenant
A 19-year-old tenant was shot and killed by another tenant in an apartment building’s parking lot. Plaintiff claimed that the owner knew that the tenant was violent and should have evicted him. Also, a housekeeper had warned the building’s manager that the tenant carried guns and knives, had assaulted her once with a butcher’s knife, and had bragged about killing people. (Arnett v. Linda Manor LP, Case Number A 300222, Clark County District Court, Nevada, 1993) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $500 — Unnecessary Loss: $12,599,500
$3,000,000 — Failure to Repair Lock
Plaintiff, a 47-year-old grandmother, was raped at gunpoint in the stairwell of her apartment building. Her assailant unlawfully entered the building through an exterior entrance door with a lock that had not been properly maintained by the defendant. (Ortiz v. New York City Housing Authority, 22 F.Supp.2d 15, United States District Court, Eastern District of New York, 1998) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $250 — Unnecessary Loss: $2,999,750
$2,000,000 — Failure to Supervise Company Party
Plaintiff, an employee of defendant, sued for injuries sustained when he was struck in the face and blinded in one eye by a bottle rocket launched by a co-worker at defendant’s Fourth of July picnic. Plaintiff alleged that defendant failed to discharge its obligation to adequately supervise his co-worker and the conduct of the picnic. The incident was foreseeable because defendant knew that fireworks had been discharged at previous picnics. (Gonzalez v. John B. Lovett Associates, LTD, 675 N.Y.S.2d 72, Supreme Court, Appellate Division, New York, 1998) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $100 — Unnecessary Loss: $1,999,900
$518,500 — Failure To Evict Tenants Engaged In Criminal Activity
The plaintiff was the on-site superintendent of a building owned and managed by defendant. After he was assaulted on two separate occasions on the premises by tenants engaged in drug activities, he instituted action alleging the defendant failed to evict tenants who engaged in criminal activity and failed to maintain minimal security standards. He repeatedly notified the defendant of the drug activity and the inadequate security measures. (Beatty v. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, 599 N.Y.S. 13, Supreme Court, Appellate Division, New York, 1993) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $1,000 — Unnecessary Loss: $517,500
$1,100,000 — Open Security Door
Plaintiff, a tenant of a New York City apartment building, was attacked and robbed as she entered her apartment. She claimed that the defendant provided inadequate security by keeping the building’s security door open. The tenant showed that the superintendent and his wife repeatedly kept the lobby’s security door propped open with a doorstop. Despite many complaints from tenants, the defendant did not fix the problem. (Chianese v. Meier, Case Number 3355, Supreme Court, Appellate Division, New York, 2001) Estimated Cost of Prevention: $5.00 — Unnecessary Loss: $1,099,995