By Mattew Worley, Esq.
Cities may be held liable for injuries to pedestrians caused
by defects in the sidewalk “curb cutout,” according to a Michigan Court of
Appeals decision in Antonio Moraccini v.
City of Sterling Heights.
In Moraccini, the
plaintiff fell and was injured by alleged defects in the portion of the
sidewalk that meets up with the county-maintained road. When the sidewalk was installed by the city
in 1977, the raised portion of the existing curb was cut away in order to make
the sidewalk level with the road. The
plaintiff alleged that this cutout area was “uneven, damaged, and unstable,
with deep cracks and crevices.”
The Plaintiff sued the city for negligence. The city responded and sought to get the case
dismissed on governmental immunity. The
trial court rejected the city’s argument and the city appealed.
On appeal, the city argued that plaintiff’s injury was
caused by an alleged defect in the curb and gutter portion of Macomb County’s
roadway and thus, the city was not liable.
The appellate court again sided with the plaintiff and held that the
curb cutout constituted a path for pedestrians and was designed to be used by
pedestrians. As such, that area is
considered an extension of the sidewalk and the duty to maintain it rests with
the city, not the county road commission.
The case was remanded back to the trial court to determine
if the city is liable. According to
Michigan law, the city may be liable for plaintiff’s injury if the city knew,
or should have known, of the alleged defect at least 30 days before the injury
and the defect was the proximate cause of the injury.
To learn more and read the opinion, please visit:
No comments:
Post a Comment