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Florida: County Prisoner Slipped On Wet Floor, Awarded $6,000
On August 18, 1994, a former prisoner in Florida's Escambia County Jail was
awarded $6,000 for injuries she sustained when she slipped and fell on the
wet floor in a holding area.
Plaintiff, Sandra James, a prisoner in the jail's work release program, was
taken to a holding area with other work release prisoners to await release
to their jobs. Upon entering the holding area, James slipped and fell on
the wet floor, which had been recently mopped by another prisoner. James
injured her back and right hip and sprained her right ankle.
James sued alleging the county was negligent in three things: first, for
ordering a prisoner to mop the floor just before other prisoners were to be
held in it; second, for allowing an excessively slippery condition to
remain in the holding area when prisoners were brought in; and third, for
not warning prisoners in the holding area of the hazardous conditions.
At trial James presented expert medical testimony from orthopedic surgeon
Stephen J. Flood, M.D.
The County defended alleging that it was entitled to sovereign immunity and
that James was also negligent.
James was awarded $6,000. She was represented by Michael A. Dessommes of
Gulf Breeze. See: James v. Escambia County, Escambia County Circuit Court,
Case No. 93-1569.
awarded $6,000 for injuries she sustained when she slipped and fell on the
wet floor in a holding area.
Plaintiff, Sandra James, a prisoner in the jail's work release program, was
taken to a holding area with other work release prisoners to await release
to their jobs. Upon entering the holding area, James slipped and fell on
the wet floor, which had been recently mopped by another prisoner. James
injured her back and right hip and sprained her right ankle.
James sued alleging the county was negligent in three things: first, for
ordering a prisoner to mop the floor just before other prisoners were to be
held in it; second, for allowing an excessively slippery condition to
remain in the holding area when prisoners were brought in; and third, for
not warning prisoners in the holding area of the hazardous conditions.
At trial James presented expert medical testimony from orthopedic surgeon
Stephen J. Flood, M.D.
The County defended alleging that it was entitled to sovereign immunity and
that James was also negligent.
James was awarded $6,000. She was represented by Michael A. Dessommes of
Gulf Breeze. See: James v. Escambia County, Escambia County Circuit Court,
Case No. 93-1569.
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Related legal case
James v. Escambia County
| Year | 1994 |
|---|---|
| Cite | Escambia County Circuit Court, Case No. 93-1569 |
| Level | State Trial Court |
| Conclusion | Bench Verdict |
| Attorney Fees | 0 |
| Damages | 0 |
| Injunction Status | N/A |