Woman wins $258,000 lawsuit against Kohl's for injuries suffered by her shopping cart

[Pardus]

Article

By HILLARY FEDERICO, hfederico@courant.com The Hartford Courant

8:43 p.m. EDT, April 29, 2011
WILLIMANTIC —

A jury has returned a $258,000 verdict against Kohl's department stores for its negligence regarding the safety of a shopping cart used by a customer at the company's Willimantic location in 2007.

The Willimantic jury awarded the damages Friday to Alice Mae Suits, a retired school social worker who was hospitalized in April 2007 as a result of the injuries she suffered when the wheels on a cart she was pushing stopped and the cart "sheared off the front of her shins," said her lawyer, David W. Cooney of RisCassi and Davis law firm in Hartford.

Suits, 78, of Storrs, suffered facial lacerations, leg lacerations and leg hematomas — a collection of pooled blood in a small area of the lower leg that required extensive surgery and skin grafting, according to court documents. She was 74 at the time.

"The shopping carts in use when [Suits] was injured were poorly designed, using plastic furniture-style caster wheels that would cause the carts to suddenly jam and stop," Cooney said. "When this happened to [Suits], she fell and suffered extensive injuries to her face and legs, which were cut to the bone by the bottom of the shopping cart."

The assistant store manager at Kohls' Willimantic location, Donna Badstuedner, said she was not at liberty to comment on the case. She did say that the store hadn't had any issues with its shopping carts in the past.

 

[Mike Gayner]

I don't understand this accident. So the wheels break off, the cart comes to a sudden stop, how does this cause that type of injury?

 

[Slew Foot]

What kind of crazy ass shopping cart cuts people into pieces? Im guessing some sort of set up.

 

[Kadarin]

I *really* have trouble believing that she sustained that much injury from a shopping cart that stopped suddenly, and I've never heard of this happening to anyone, ever.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

WUT

 

[ElFenix]

I don't understand this accident. So the wheels break off, the cart comes to a sudden stop, how does this cause that type of injury?

old lady was probably using it as a walker, when it collapsed unexpectedly she fell into it.

What kind of crazy ass shopping cart cuts people into pieces? Im guessing some sort of set up.

old people are fragile?
:shrug:

 

[Brigandier]

I *really* have trouble believing that she sustained that much injury from a shopping cart that stopped suddenly, and I've never heard of this happening to anyone, ever.

I've fooled around in my time, running carts way too fast. The worst that happened to me is that I've hit a rock, had the cart stop, and had the bar driven into my midsection. It knocked the wind out of me, not much other injury.

Can I have money for that? If yes, fuck that, I shouldn't have been foolin'.

 

[gorcorps]

WTF is with the system... Any normal person wouldn't have fallen and hurt themselves. This fragile old Bitty nearly breaks a hip and they blame the cart? Why don't we sue mother nature while we're at it?

 

[Obsy]

it was probably a cart that locked its wheels when you reach a boundary. i was riding one down target the other day when it suddenly locked and sent me flying off face forward

 

[Mike Gayner]

it was probably a cart that locked its wheels when you reach a boundary. i was riding one down target the other day when it suddenly locked and sent me flying off face forward

Reading comprehension fail.

 

[Miramonti]

This is encouraging. Next time, instead of returning 3 of 4 walmart carts before finding one that's not crippled or retarded, I can take the first one and profit!

 

[DangerAardvark]

The overwhelming outpouring of sympathy for Kohl's is heartwarming.

 

[oogabooga]

Holy shit, that cart kicked her ass!

Joking aside - Was the cart presented to the jury showing an unusually sharp bottom bar or something? Or a video of it happening? I honestly can't even imagine how this would happen. I mean, I can try, but it's hard to believe the cart could cause facial lacerations could tear up a shin? It seems very odd.

 

[GodlessAstronomer]

Old people are terrible at life. Which is ironic given their experience at it.

 

[Craig234]

Glad to hear she won this, which should help get stores not to have it happen again.

 

[Skyclad1uhm1]

WTF is with the system... Any normal person wouldn't have fallen and hurt themselves. This fragile old Bitty nearly breaks a hip and they blame the cart? Why don't we sue mother nature while we're at it?

Because mother nature doesn't have money.

 

[TXHokie]

Obviously the cart was possesed by Transformers

 

[SandEagle]

the cart couldn't take it anymore. it got tired of getting....




....pushed around! yeeeeeaaahhhh!!!

 

[novasatori]

uh some carts have the sharp edges that can easily cut, kinda like ends of cut rebar

old people falling is not really such a good idea, let alone into jagged metal edges

 

[deadken]

Read the article again. Simply stated: the cart jammed because of a poor (a.k.a. cheap) design. 74 Y.O. woman falls into cart and onto ground, extensive injuries (requiring hospitalization and skin grafts). Jury awards her $258k.

I don't know how many people here have ever sat on a jury. I will say that if you sit for an entire case you will get so much information that it can not possibly be fit into a newspaper article.

The people on that jury had good reasons (none of which we know) to award her that money. I'd bet that some of it was because there were pictures of grandma all cut up with an injured face having to sit in a hospital for weeks. No one wants to see an older woman injured like that (outside of the regulars at ATOT and certain political groups).

She got the money that 12 of her peers, who sat through hours of testimony, thought she deserved. Not a difficult concept.

 

[MotF Bane]

Glad to hear she won this, which should help get stores not to have it happen again.

Go back to the cesspool and stay there.

 

[MotF Bane]

The jury is retarded, and so is the old bat.

 

[marvdmartian]

I don't understand this accident. So the wheels break off, the cart comes to a sudden stop, how does this cause that type of injury?

They forgot to mention the 74 year old retired woman who was pushing said cart at 10mph, in an attempt to get to the clearance rack before anyone else could. Someone should have told her......speed kills......or, at least, shears off the front of your shins!!

 

[SaDiZTiKStyLeZ]

I'm sure the cart now wishes it would have just gone all out and killed her. Made the best of it. She's old, she'll be going any time now.

 

[moshquerade]

shouldn't Kohls now sue the cart manufacturer? : /
then sue the cart designer?
then turn around and sue the cart material supplier for faulty material?