“It’s our understanding that the city ran out of money to maintain its parking meter maintenance program, and they have left these parking meter bases in those areas, which are extremely dangerous and pose a danger to the public at large,” Berman said.
A 70-year-old man who tripped and fell on a San Diego sidewalk is seeking more than $35 million in compensation from the city.
According to Yahoo! News, the man says that he and his wife were leaving a sushi restaurant near the intersection of Washington Street and Albatross Drive when he fell, reportedly sustaining a broken neck and back as a result. William M. Berman, an attorney for the plaintiff, said that a nearby security camera captured the moment his client tripped over a raised parking meter base. The base was allegedly heavily rusted and contained exposed bolts.
“My client suffered significant injuries, a broken neck and a broken back, and will likely never be the same again,” Berman said. “Elderly gentleman who’s lost his ability to walk and is suffering tremendously as a result of this incident.”
Berman told NBC-San Diego that the city created a “dangerous condition” when it removed the parking meter a year earlier but failed to retrieve the raised metal base. Similar hazards, Berman said, are present in nearby communities like Mission Hills, Hillcrest, and Balboa Park.
“They protrude about an inch to two inches from the sidewalk,” Berman said. “The city needs to make sure they’re taking out these bases from the sidewalk.”
Berman’s client has since been released from the hospital but still requires around-the-clock medical care.
“It’s our understanding that the city ran out of money to maintain its parking meter maintenance program, and they have left these parking meter bases in those areas, which are extremely dangerous and pose a danger to the public at large,” Berman said.
The alleged victim is seeking $35 million to cover medical bills and, Berman says, to hold the city responsible for an unaddressed hazard.
“The city needs to get out there and make sure that they’re taking out these bases from the sidewalks, because any adult, any child, any bicyclist could readily trip or fall over these remainder bases,” he said.
Sources
$35M claim filed against the city of San Diego over Mission Hills trip-and-fall
California city faces staggering $35M lawsuit over 70-year-old’s streetside tumble
Man sues San Diego for $35M after tripping on parking meter bolts, breaking back and neck
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