Corgey v. Target Corporation
Filing
41
OPINION on Summary Judgment. (Signed by Judge Lynn N Hughes) Parties notified. (ghassan, 4)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS District Court
United States
Southern District of Texas
Carol Corgey,
Plaintiff,
1iersus
Target Corporation and USM. Inc.,
Defendants.
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ENTERED
August 07, 2018
David J. Bradley, Clerk
Civil Action H-q-2.35
Opinion on Summary Judgment
1.
Facts.
On May
2.8,2.015,
Carol Corgey went to a Target store in Tomball,
Texas. While Corgey was returning to her car, she saw a puddle without
constraints in her choice of path. She chose to walk through the puddle instead
of around it, even though the surrounding area was dry. Corgey fell. She says she
slipped on algae. Corgey says she could not see the algae, but that she "felt it
against her leg" when she felL A passerby went to the store for help. Shortly, the
manager came to the parking lot and asked Corgey whether she should call for
an ambulance. Corgey said no and that her husband was coming to pick her up.
The store manager and a maintenance worker waited with her for about IS
minutes until her husband arrived. Corgey's husband took her to St. Luke's
Hospital where a doctor performed X-rays on her knee. Corgey broke her
kneecap.
On August 6,2.010, Target Corporation hired USM,Inc., to landscape and
keep the outside clean and safe. They agreed that USM would manage basic
irrigation and check the site at least once a week. If USM did not inspect the
premises weekly, then it would be liable for all slip-and-fall accidents. USM had
done the weekly inspection.
Tomball had flooded from several inches of rain in the days before the
accident. USM is not responsible for draining ponded water from rain.
3.
Negligence.
Corgey says USM and Target were both negligent in keeping the store
premises safe. Corgey should have walked around the puddle. Target and USM
are not responsible for the path she chose. It was approximately two feet wide
and easily avoidable. Corgey admits that she had taken a different route through
the parking lot when she entered the store. She could have returned to her car
using the same route or many others.
USM is not liable. Rain, its severity, and its continuity are nature. It was
not negligent because the parking lot had clear pathways which could have
delivered Corgey safely to her car. A pool of water may be deeper than expected
or it can contain unknown, slimy substances. Corgey assumed the risk of a fall
when she stepped through the puddle. Neither USM' s agreement with Target nor
the law requires it to ensure a waterless property. The pictures from the security
camera show that the puddle was the only one in the lot. Corgey should have
chosen to walk back to her car safely.
Corgey says Target is negligent in its hiring of USM and its own
employees. She specifies nothing that an employee ofTarget did or did not do in
training that caused or exacerbated her accident. Target is not liable because it
only owes a duty to warn invitees of concealed dangers of which it knows or
should have known. C orgey claims that the danger was hidden because she could
not see the algae; however, she could see the pool of water. The puddle was open
and obvious.
No evidence shows that algae was present. While Corgey waited for her
husband, she says the manager and maintenance man discussed using muriatic
acid to clean the area. Muriatic acid is often used for general cleaning, including
to clean stains and mold. This is not evidence that algae was in the puddle. This
measure could be preventative or curative, neither of which is admissible to show
what was in the puddle and what caused her fall. Whether or not algae was in
the puddle, Corgey could have sustained the same injuries from stepping into
unknown water. After Corgey's fall, Target's employees immediately responded
to her needs. She confirmed that they treated her well.
4.
Conclusion
The condition that caused Corgey's fall is unknown. The flooding in the
days preceding the accident was beyond the control ofT arget or USM. The water
was open and obvious as was the common knowledge that stepping in water may
be hazardous in its depth, contents, and uneven bottom. Because Corgey did not
see the algae, she cannot be sure that it was present. A watery surface can be
slippery without algae. She knew or should have known the dangers when she
saw the puddle and decided against walking a few extra steps to avoid it. Corgey
had the every chance to avoid the risk of an accident from stepping into a pool.
Carol Corgey will take nothing from Target Corporation and USM, Inc.
Signed on August 6, 20r8, at Houston, Texas.
Lynn N. Hughes
United States DistrictJudge
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