Poyner v. Loftus
District of Columbia Court of Appeals
694 A.2d 69 (1997)
- Written by Craig Conway, LLM
Facts
William Poyner (plaintiff), who was legally blind, could only see about six to eight feet in front of him. Poyner did not rely on a cane or a seeing-eye dog. While walking home from the dry cleaners, a route he had taken a number of times previously, Poyner walked onto an elevated walkway. There were several bushes along the walkway that provided a natural barrier, which Poyner previously had used as a guide to traverse his route. However, on the day he walked on the pathway one of the bushes was missing. As Poyner neared the missing bush, someone called his name. Poyner looked in the direction of the caller and then fell approximately four feet off the platform, suffering injuries. Poyner filed suit against the owner of the building, Loftus, the property manager in charge of its maintenance, and the owner of the dry cleaning business (defendants) for negligence. The defendants moved for summary judgment. The trial court granted the defendants’ motion and found Poyner contributorily negligent. Poyner appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Schwelb, J.)
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