Florida Injury Attorney Blog

In Florida, a Palm Beach County jury awarded the estate of a man murdered at a West Palm Beach apartment $3.2 million for his wrongful death. The defendant in the Florida premises liability wrongful death case was Haverhill Affordable Housing and Picerne Management, the management company and owner of the complex where Corey Beckford died.

The 32-year-old father of four was shot to death on April 10, 2007 at Saddlebrook Apartments. This was not the first murder at the complex. In 2005, a 25-year-old man died and his nine-year-old daughter was injured after being shot by a masked gunman.

Florida’s Wrongful Death Statute:

768.19 Right of action.--When the death of a person is caused by the wrongful act, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty of any person, including those occurring on navigable waters, and the event would have entitled the person injured to maintain an action and recover damages if death had not ensued, the person or watercraft that would have been liable in damages if death had not ensued shall be liable for damages as specified in this act notwithstanding the death of the person injured, although death was caused under circumstances constituting a felony.

The managers and owners of the many housing and apartment complexes and retirement centers in Florida are responsible for keeping their properties safe for residents and visitors. Adequate security measures, such as locks on entrances and windows, proper lighting, alarm systems, security cameras, security gates, and security guards, must be in place—especially on a premise where there has been a history of crimes committed on the property or in the surrounding area.

When failure to take the necessary steps to prevent crimes from happening occurs, the injury victim of the estate/family members of the deceased can file a personal injury or wrongful death claim or lawsuit based on premises liability and/or inadequate security.

Contact our Palm Beach wrongful death lawyers to discuss your case.

Jury awards $3.2 million in wrongful death at apartment complex, Sun-Sentinel May 7, 2008

The 2007 Florida Statutes

Related Web Resource:

Saddlebrook Apartment Homes, Yahoo.com

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The husband of Randi Gorenberg, the 52-year-old Boca Raton resident who was abducted and shot in the head before her body was dumped behind a South Florida civic center, is suing Town Center at Boca Raton Mall and its owner, Simon Property Group, for their alleged inadequate security-related premises liability negligence that led to her kidnapping and wrongful death.

Randi’s body was found an hour after credit card receipts document purchases that she had made will shopping at the mall. Her husband, Stewart, is seeking unspecified damages. This is the third Florida personal injury lawsuit recently filed that names the mall and its owners as defendants over inadequate security-related injuries and deaths.

Police in Florida have never said that Randi was kidnapped, but Stewart’s Florida personal injury lawyers said they believe that they can prove that she was abducted from the mall premises. Simon Property Group calls the allegations “self-serving and ridiculous.”

Palm Beach County police are investigating whether there Is a connection between Randi’s murder and the murders of 47-year-old Nancy Bochicchio and 7-year old Joey Bochicchio-Hauser, a mother and daughter that were kidnapped while leaving the mall, forced to take money from an ATM, and then bound and shot in the heads Their bodies were discovered in their SUV at the mall’s parking. Bochicchio’s family sued the mall and Simon Property Group for Nancy and Joey’s wrongful deaths.

In August, a mother and her two-year-old son were kidnapped and also forced to withdraw money from an ATM. The woman was able to free herself and her son after their attacker left them tied up. She is suing the mall for injuries related to alleged negligence and inadequate security that allowed the crime to happen.

In January, Boca Raton Council members accused Simon Property Group and the mall for not remedying inadequate security issues after the Bochicchio slayings. Boca Raton police and mall patrons have also complained to the mall about its poor security measures.

If someone you love has died because of the negligence of a property owner or anyone else, our South Florida wrongful death law firm can help you determine whether you have grounds for a civil case. You may be entitled to wrongful death compensation for your losses.

Lawsuit filed against Town Center mall owners over 2007 murder, Sun-Sentinel.com, April 23, 2008

Boca mall faces lawsuit in murders of mother, Sun-Sentinel.com, January 9, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Town Center at Boca Raton

Simon Property Group

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In Florida, the mother of a man who drowned last year while trying to save two girls caught in the ocean currents is suing the Four Seasons Resort Palm Beach for his wrongful death.

Giankarlo "J.C." Squicimari died last May while at the resort. He and his friend were at the beach, when they reportedly heard the girls screaming and noticed that resort employees did not respond. No lifeguards were on duty. Squicimari, 31, and his friend ran into the water to help the girls. His friend saved the 12-year-old, but nearly drowned until someone else came to the rescue.

Squicimari held the 8-year-old girl above the water so she wouldn’t drown. He was under the water for several minutes before he was pulled out. He never regained consciousness.

The National Weather Service had cautioned that there were very dangerous rip currents that day that could put even experienced swimmers at risk of being dragged into the ocean.

Squicimari’s mother, Olga Giner filed her complaint in Palm Beach County Circuit Court today. She says the resort only had one sign, located near the pool, which noted the temperature of the water and the low and high tides.

The lawsuit claims that even though the sign explained what the different colored warning flags signified, no one who was at the beach on May 27 remembers seeing any flags. No explanations were posted regarding what to do if someone got caught in a rip current. Such signs exist at public beaches. Since Squicimari’s drowning death, the Four Seasons has posted similar signs.

It is the responsibility of all premise owners—especially the owner of a property frequented by guests, visitors, patrons, or workers—to ensure that their premise is safe and hazard free. In the event that a hazardous condition does exist on the premise, the premise owner must remedy the condition or—at the very least—provide proper warning that the unsafe condition exists. Failure to do so can be grounds for a premises liability or wrongful death case if someone on the premise is seriously injured or dies.

Family of hero who drowned during rescue sues Palm Beach resort, Sun-Sentinel.com, February 13, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Four Seasons Palm Beach

Rip Current Fact Sheet, National Weather Service

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A woman who is now blind because a golf ball hit her eye is suing the city of Palm Beach, Florida for personal injury. Katherine Georgas, 39, was walking on a bike path next to South Ocean Boulevard with her husband last May when the golf ball came flying at her from the Par-3 Golf Course. Carole Maddox, the Florida golfer who hit the errant ball, is also named in the personal injury lawsuit.

Georgas, a Palm Beach and Connecticut resident, compared the impact of the ball to being “hit by a lighting bolt” and calls the incident the “worst pain she has ever experienced. She underwent major surgery and painful rehabilitation to repair the damage. Georgas said that she had to sleep face down on a massage table for a while because she was unable to raise her head. Her medical expenses for the injury have reached the six figures. Georgas is now legally blind because of the “severe and permanent” injury.

Georgas says that the city of Palm Beach should have installed landscaping, nets, fences and warning signs to protect pedestrians and motorists from flying golf balls. The Par-3 Golf Course is located next to the ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway. The Palm Beach Police Department has documented nine reported incidents of golf balls coming from the course and striking people or motor vehicles. Auto windshields were damaged in several instances.

Georgas says that Maddox, who considers herself an erratic golfer, should have issued a warning regarding the errant ball.

Premises Liability Cases
The owners and managers of premises are supposed to make sure that there are no unsafe or dangerous conditions on a premise that can cause injury or harm to others. When failure to repair or remedy an unsafe (or failure to warn of the hazardous condition) results in injury or death, the injury victim may have grounds to sue for damages by filing a premises liability case.

Common Kinds of Premises Liability Cases Include:

• Slip and fall accidents
• Inadequate security-related crimes
• Dog attacks
• Falling merchandise cases
• Injuries caused by hidden hazards or dangerous conditions on a premise

Our Florida premises liability law firm would be happy to discuss your injury case with you. You may be able to obtain personal injury compensation for medical costs, pain and suffering, and other costs.

Woman sues Palm Beach over eye injury, PalmBeachPost.com, January 5, 2008

Woman hit by golf ball near Par 3 sues Palm Beach, Palm Beach Daily News, January 5, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Golfers be fore-warned: If a ball smacks your head, see your doctor, CNN.com, May 21, 1999

The Par-3 Golf Course, Palm Beach G.C.

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Two people were injured early Monday morning in Pembroke Pines, Florida during a shooting at the Marabou Café. The female victim, Tampa resident Julia Kenesha Cornibert, sustained a gunshot wound to her right arm. She was taken to Memorial Pembroke Hospital where she was treated and later released.

The male victim, a 31-year-old man whose name had been withheld by police, was shot several times. He underwent surgery at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, Florida.

There were about 500 people at the nightclub when the shooting took place.

Police are looking for the gunman. According to reports, shootings have taken place before outside the nightclub. This is the first shooting incident to reportedly occur inside the club.

Inadequate Security Cases
If you or someone you love has been injured on a premise because the property owner or manager did not provide proper or sufficient security, you may have grounds to file an inadequate security claim against him or her.

In Florida, landowners, business owners, property managers, apartment managers, shopping mall owners, nightclub owners, landlords, building owners, and other people that own or are in charge of a premise are supposed to provide proper security. Security alarms, security personnel, secure parking, and security cameras are some of the many security measures that a premise owner or manager can put into place.

If a premise owner or manager knows that there is a risk that a crime may be committed on the property and he or she doesn’t take the proper measures to prevent the crime from happening, the premise owner or manager can be sued for personal injury or wrongful death if someone is injured or killed on the premise as a result.

Rape, physical assault, shootings, stabbings, and robbery are some of the crimes that can take place on a premise that doesn’t have proper security.

As the victim of a premises liability crime caused by inadequate security, you are entitled under to receive compensation for your injuries.

2 shot in Pembroke Pines nightclub, Sun-Sentinel.com, October 8, 2007

2 injured in Pembroke Pines club shooting, Miami Herald, October 8, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Inadequate security: the new liability crisis, Allbusiness.com, July 1, 1993

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