Chaux vs. Walgreens Co.. Case no. 2021-023442-CA-01; Judge William Thomas, 10-27-23.Attorney for plaintiff: Keith Chasin of Keith Chasin, P.A. in Miami, FL. Attorney for plaintiff: Gabriel M. Sanchez of The Sanchez Law Group in Miami, FL. Attorney for defendant: David M. Perez and David M. Tarlow of Quintairos, Prieto, Wood, & Boyer, P.A. in Miami, FL.

In this premises liability case, the plaintiff asserted that the defendant failed to maintain its premises in a safe condition, allowing a substance to exist on the floor near the checkout area where patrons were likely to encounter the hazard. The plaintiff claimed that she fell on the substance, striking her head on the floor and suffering significant permanent injury. The defendant destroyed the videotape of incident and was sanctioned via jury instruction on adverse inference. Although the defendant did not dispute the platniffs fall, it contested whether the fall was caused by a transitory foreign substance and, thus, governed by section 768.0755, Florida Statutes (2021), or alcohol withdrawal symptoms or syncope based on the plaintiffs history of alcoholism or other identified medical conditions. On May 13, 2021, the plaintiff was a business invitee of the defendant store/pharmacy. The plaintiff was approaching the checkout area when she claimed to have slipped and fallen on a transitory substance on the floor of the premises. The plaintiff contended that the defendant negligently failed to maintain its store in a safe condition for patrons by its knowledge of and failure to repair or warn of a cooler near the checkout area to leak water onto the floor. The plaintiff presented evidence that the cooler consistently leaked and entered a picture taken on behalf of the plaintiff one week after her fall showing an obvious water stain on the floor that emanated from the refrigerator cooler. The water stain appeared to have been there for some length of time. Additionally, the defendant's cashier testified that the cooler leaked and that, on multiple occasions, she had to place a Wet Floor sign in the area to warn customers. The plaintiff alleged that when she fell, she struck her head on the floor, rendering her unconscious and resulting in permanent injuries. As a result, the plaintiff claimed traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic seizures. The plaintiff was hospitalized for 4 months and underwent 3 surgeries in that time. The plaintiff claimed permanent cognitive damage; loss of sense of taste and smell; and balance issues that require her to use assistive devices to ambulate. The plaintiff asserted that she can no longer engage in activities she once enjoyed, such as running, biking, skating and other activities. The plaintiff claimed that the defendant failed to make its store safe and lost or destroyed a critical piece of evidence, the CCTV...