Ayako Sidwell v. Circuit City Stores, Inc.
Published: Oct. 9, 1999 | Result Date: Mar. 16, 1999 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: H1955529 Verdict – $94,075
Judge
Court
Alameda Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Paul D. Caleo
(Gordon & Rees LLP)
Experts
Plaintiff
Wells Hoeltje
(technical)
Hugh Bevan-Thomas
(medical)
Defendant
Robert J. Kent
(technical)
Facts
On April 15, 1996, plaintiff Ayako Sidwell, a 76-year-old woman, purchased a television set from a Circuit City store in Newark. The plaintiff, accompanied by her adult son, was directed to exit through the customer pick-up doors at the front of the store. The plaintiff exited through the doors and continued walking. After a few steps, the plaintiff fell 23 inches off an unguarded "customer loading dock" with a 23-inch drop that was located 10 feet outside the doors the plaintiff had been directed to use. There was a yellow stripe on the edge of the loading dock just before the drop. The plaintiff injured her left foot in the fall. The plaintiff brought this action against Circuit City Stores Inc. based on premises liability.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiffs made a settlement demand for $75,000. The defendant made a settlement offer for $30,000 shortly before trial.
Injuries
The plaintiff claimed she suffered an interarticular comminuted fracture of the left calcaneous with resulting degenerative joint disease of the subtalar joint. As a result of the injury, the plaintiff claimed she can no longer walk without pain in her foot, can no longer exercise by walking two miles per day, and must wear special shoes with a heel insert to reduce the pain. The plaintiff claimed her condition was permanent and was not likely to improve.
Other Information
A non-binding judicial arbitration was held on Oct. 5, 1998, before Frederick James, resulting in an award of $35,000, reduced by 25 percent comparative fault to $22,500. The plaintiff rejected the award. The verdict was reached approximately two years after the case was filed. EXPERT TESTIMONY: PlaintiffÆs technical expert Wells Hoeltje testified that he knew of no other retail establishment with a similar customer loading dock with a drop at the front of the store; that loading docks with drops are usually located at the rear of the store; and that the scene produced an optical illusion for the exiting customer, because the parking spaces and yellow striping for cars parked to load blended with the parking spaces of the storeÆs parking lot, making the surface seem level from the door to the parking lot. Hoeltje also testified that a warning sign should have been placed on the exit door and on a column located outside the door, and that 36-inch wide warning stripes of contrasting yellow and black, with tactile warnings, should have been placed along the edge.
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