Negligent Security Attorney
Negligent Security Attorney Overview
Negligent security cases arise when criminals injure someone while on another landowner’s property. The key to these claims is that the landowner failed to take adequate safety and security precautions to protect its guests, customers, or clients from third-party criminal actors. Generally, Florida imposes no legal duty on property owners to control the conduct of third persons or prevent such individuals from harming another. Boynton v. Burglass, 590 So.2d 446 (Fla. 3rd DCA 1991). However, there is an exception which requires landowners to guard against foreseeable third party crimes. It is a negligence claim based on the landowner’s failure to reasonably maintain his or her property in accordance with the law. Only a knowledgeable negligent security attorney can determine if your case qualifies as one deserving compensation.
Proving Negligent Security - Overall elements
In Florida, a victim must prove four (4) overall elements in order to prove their negligent security case:
- The landowner owed the victim a duty of care at the time of the harm,
- The premises lacked reasonable security precautions,
- Crime was “reasonably foreseeable” to occur, and
- The victim suffered injury and harm as a result
A victim’s status on the property is a critical part of the duty analysis. Florida imposes different duties of care upon landowners depending on the reason why the victim was on the property. Invitees – people that are expressly or impliedly invited on property – are owed the highest duty of care under the law. On the other hand, trespassers are only protected from willful or wanton injury.
Landowner's Duty
Businesses and property owners are under a legal duty to take reasonable security measures to decrease the risk of criminal activity on their properties. Quite often, there is a prior history of similar criminal activity on the property which the landowner failed to address. A landowner’s failure to take appropriate action in spite of that knowledge makes additional criminal activity not only foreseeable but preventable. It is a question of neglect. A victim can usually establish that a landowner knew or should have known about criminal activity risk from factors like:
- Prior complaints about the property,
- Other crimes occurring on or near the property,
- Evidence about the property’s inadequate design, and
- Lack of property maintenance
The reasonableness of a property or business’ security measures depends on the nature and configuration of the property. A shopping mall requires much different security measures than a sports or concert venue, for instance. Some properties require manned security patrols, special lighting, cameras, and reinforced fencing or doors. Others may only require some of these measures.
What is Foreseeability
The crime which befell the victim has to be foreseeable to impose liability. The landowner’s duty arises from his actual or constructive knowledge of similar criminal acts on the property. Amerijeiras v. Metro Dade County, 534 So.2d 812 (Fla. 3rd DCA, 1988). Different Florida jurisdictions have different thresholds for what constitutes “foreseeability.” For instance, in the Third District Court of Appeals (includes greater Miami-Dade), there must have been prior “similar crimes” on the same premises. Prieto v. Miami-Dade County, 803 So.2d 780 (Fla. 3rd DCA, 2002). In addition, those prior crimes must have occurred within two (2) years of the victim’s incident. Ameijeiras v. Metro Dade County, 534 So.2d 812 (Fla. 3rd DCA, 1988).
Other jurisdictions throughout the state have less strict thresholds. For example, some courts allow introduction of evidence of lesser crimes to demonstrate notice. They also expand the timeframe of applicable criminal activity. However and generally speaking, evidence of prior violent crimes in and around the specific property are admissible. Determining if the landowner had actual or constructive notice of such evidence will be considered under the court’s analysis.
Negligent Security Damages
Any victim of a foreseeable and preventable crime on another’s property may have a personal injury claim for negligent security, entitling them to recover certain damages under the law. Those damages include medical bills incurred for treatment of injuries in the past and the cost of treatment to be obtained in the future. Past and future lost wages may be recoverable if the victim had to miss time from work, or can no longer work at all because of the degree of the injuries sustained. In addition, victims may be compensated for loss or damage of personal property in an attack.
Further, criminal attacks are usually accompanied by mental anguish, pain and suffering, and post-traumatic disorders which can last anywhere from months to a lifetime. These are also awardable in a negligent security lawsuit.
Summary
Each case is different and requires a unique investigation based on the circumstances of the incident and the property. A good negligent security attorney will know what evidence to identify and how to obtain it in order to prove a negligent security case and get the victim the most compensation they deserve.
The team at Santana Injury Law can get to work today on your claim and get you the most compensation for your injuries. Call now for a free consultation with an experienced negligent security attorney.
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