Pennsylvania State Jury Awards Target Store Patron $2,100,000 For Slip And Fall On Freshly Mopped Floor
On Dec 14, 2013, Melissa Horton went shopping at a Target store in Pittsburgh, PA. Although Horton was employed by a hotel design company, she also worked as the producer for NBC Sunday Night Football and was in town for the Steelers v. Bengals game. Every time she was in a new town for a game, her routine was to shop for incidentals at Target for herself and her coworkers.
During a spill cleanup at the Pittsburgh Target store, the employees made a decision not to shut the aisle down, but instead left it partially open and directed patrons around the spill and mop zone. According to information later provided by plaintiff's counsel, the employees directed Horton to an area that was represented as safe and dry but had actually been wet-mopped. When Horton stepped onto the mopped floor, her foot slipped and she did a complete split. This caused a complete avulsion of the hamstring tendon. On Jan. 7, 2014, Horton underwent a significant reattachment surgery. Afterward, she was confined to a body brace for six weeks, required nursing care, and was unable to produce multiple NFL playoff games and other sporting events. Horton required extensive physical therapy and developed chronic sciatic pain due to scar tissue that built up after the first surgery. She now walks with a limp.
On Feb. 20, 2014, Horton filed an action against Target Corporation in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas for Allegheny County. The action was assigned to Judge Michael A. DellaVechia.
In early 2017, the matter proceeded to a jury trial. Target defended the assertions of liability, contending that Horton saw the caution cones that had been set up by Target employees in the spill and clean-up site. Target maintained that its employees had acted properly in dealing with the spill and that Horton had been negligent by going into the clean-up area.
On March 13, 2017, the jury reached a verdict in Horton's favor, finding that Target had been negligent but that Horton had not. The jury awarded Horton a total of $2,100,000.00 in damages, including $1,400,000.00 in past non-economic damages and $700,000.00 in future non-economic damages.
Melissa Horton was represented by Brendan Lupetin of Meyers Evans & Associates, LLC. Target was represented by Thomas P. Birris of Marshall, Dennehey, Warner, Coleman & Goggin. Attached is plaintiff's pretrial statement in this action for viewing.
Lexis Advance subscribers may view the complete summary here: Melissa Horton v. Target Corporation; 2017 Jury Verdicts LEXIS 683.
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