Britt Jones
A woman has been awarded $7.5 million after falling on a sidewalk.
Justine Gurrola, a special education teacher, has won a major payout seven years after she fell down whilst walking in Whittier, Los Angeles County.
The incident occurred in February 2018 when the US woman allegedly tripped on an uneven sidewalk.
Gurrola claims she fell forward, as per a legal complaint filed at the Superior Court of California.
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Her fall has since caused her to miss out on things she used to love, and it has been a very ‘sad’ time to come to terms with her new abilities.
Gurrola’s trial attorney, Nick Rowley, told People that the injuries Gurrola sustained in the fall included a broken wrist, elbow and nose.
She is said to have also injured her knees, neck and back, as well as suffering ‘a mild traumatic brain injury’.
The teacher also required arthroscopic knee surgery on both her knees after the fall.
Because of this, he claims his client has been living in chronic pain since the incident.
The trial against the city of Whittier lasted five weeks, which was settled on Tuesday, October 14, as per Whittier Daily News.
Rowley said this was the largest sidewalk defect trip-and-fall settlement in California history, as the jury ‘returned a unanimous verdict against the City [of Whittier] assigning 100% fault against the city.’
“We settled the damages portion of the case for $7.5 million, which is the largest sidewalk defect trip-and-fall settlement in California State history,” he added to the outlet.
According to Rowley, who spoke to Whittier Daily News, the city had ignored complaints about the condition of the sidewalks prior to the fall.
He said the uneven nature was caused by tree roots, and had been dismissed for years, with the city not implementing adequate inspection protocols to prevent injury.
“Public safety isn’t just police and firefighters; it’s ensuring public right-of-ways are maintained to prevent injury or worse. Waiting until people are seriously hurt or killed before fixing long-standing dangerous conditions is wrong,” he told the outlet.
Gurrola, who shared her story with NBC 4, said the lawsuit wasn’t about the money, but so that further incidents could be prevented.
“Whittier is known for its trees. We have beautiful trees. [...] But, unfortunately, sometimes that can be unsafe,” she said, adding, "The things I loved to do I could no longer [do]. It made me really sad.”
She added: "I think the biggest thing is that other people won't suffer from this [now]."