Green v. Dollar General et al

Filing 87

ORDER AND REASONS re 25 MOTION for Summary Judgment. ORDERED that the motion for summary judgment is hereby DENIED without prejudice. FURTHER ORDERED that the pretrial conference, scheduled for June 7, 2018, and the trial, scheduled for June 25, 2018, is hereby CONTINUED, to be reset at a scheduling conference with the Court. Signed by Judge Martin L.C. Feldman on 6/4/2018.(clc)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA

PAMELA GREEN

CIVIL ACTION

v.

NO. 17-2101

DOLLAR GENERAL AND
ABC INSURANCE COMPANY

SECTION "F"

ORDER AND REASONS
Before the Court is Dollar General’s motion for summary
judgment. For the reasons that follow, the motion is DENIED without
prejudice.
Pamela

Green

visited

a

Dollar

General

store

in

Violet,

Louisiana on the evening of March 5, 2016. When she opened the
door to the store freezer to retrieve some popsicles, an insulated
plastic half-gallon jug called the Igloo Legend Beverage Cooler
fell from its perch above the freezer onto Green’s head. The
contact allegedly caused a cervical herniation at the C-5/6 level.
The insulated jug weighed 1.1 lbs. That fact is not in dispute.
Green sued DG Louisiana, LLC (Dollar General) in the 34th
Judicial District Court in St. Bernard Parish on January 27, 2017.
The lawsuit was removed to this Court on March 13, 2017. On March
5, 2018, Dollar General filed a motion for summary judgment. It
supplemented its motion on May 15, 2018 after additional discovery
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had been conducted. The plaintiff alleged that Mindy McBride, a
Dollar General employee and key witness, had been coerced before
her deposition by her former manager, Mike Wiltz, and that further
discovery was needed to assess the accuracy of her testimony and
develop a credible record. She submitted copies of text messages
from Wiltz to McBride in which he instructs her to “say whatever
it is you have to say to cover your ass.” The plaintiff has since
subpoenaed McBride, but she failed to appear at the deposition.
The plaintiff has filed a motion to compel and enforce the subpoena
against McBride, which has been referred to Magistrate Judge
Wilkinson.
The Court cannot consider the motion for summary judgment on
the merits until the plaintiff can depose McBride, one of the only
employees present the afternoon of the accident. The seriousness
of

the

allegations

against

of

McBride’s

testimony

make

a

determination of summary judgment inappropriate at this time.
Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED: that the motion for summary
judgment is hereby DENIED without prejudice. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED:
that the pretrial conference, scheduled for June 7, 2018, and the
trial, scheduled for June 25, 2018, is hereby CONTINUED, to be
reset at a scheduling conference with the Court.

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New Orleans, Louisiana, June 4, 2018

_____________________________
MARTIN L. C. FELDMAN
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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