Madison County Circuit Judge Dennis Ruth denied a woman’s request for a new trial in a suit alleging she was knocked over on a dance floor at the Alton VFW.
Madison County jurors reached a verdict in favor of defendant Alton VFW Post 1308 on Nov. 17 following a three-day trial.
Plaintiff Mary Svoboda filed a motion for a new trial on Nov. 22 through attorney Benjamin Tobin of Pratt & Tobin PC in East Alton.
Ruth denied the motion on Jan. 7.
“Upon consideration of the briefs and the evidence at trial, the court denies plaintiff’s motion for a new trial finding that the verdict was not against the manifest weight of the evidence,” he wrote.
Defense attorney Courtney Stirrat of Franke Schultz & Mullen PC told the Record that the incident occurred on Aug. 14, 2014, when the Alton VFW held its usual Friday night dance for members as well as the general public. Svoboda attended the dance along with a handful of her friends, Stirrat said. While on the dance floor, Svoboda and patron Michael Bays allegedly collided, causing her to fall to the ground and break her hip.
Svoboda then sued the VFW on May 26, 2015. She filed her most recent amended complaint on Nov. 15, just before the trial began. In her amended complaint she added an additional theory of liability. She claimed her fall was caused by dance wax improperly applied by VFW patrons, which allegedly made the floor slippery.
Svoboda alleged the defendant improperly maintained the premises, failed to provide adequate security, failed to supervise the dance floor, permitted its customers to “wildly and erratically dance on the dance floor,” failed to maintain its facilities, allowed its customers to apply wax to the dance floor “making it slick and dangerous,” failed to remove excess wax from the floor, failed to adequately staff the premises, and failed to adequately train and supervise its employees.
Stirrat said that on the first day of evidence during the trial, Svoboda called to the stand the friends with whom she attended the dance. The first witness testified that he was at the bar getting a drink and did not witness the fall.
“He admitted the previous descriptions he had given of the incident were based only on second-hand knowledge,” Stirrat said.
She said another friend testified that she was standing next to the plaintiff when the incident occurred. She said Bays bumped into Svoboda, knocking her to the ground.
“Notably, none of plaintiff’s witnesses testified to seeing dance wax being applied to the dance floor by any patron nor was there any mention that the dance floor was slippery,” Stirrat said.
She said Svoboda’s testimony contradicted her friends’ testimonies. She testified that Bays picked her up, looked her in the eye, then dropped her to the ground. She added that she thought the incident was an accident.
Stirrat said the defendant’s first witness, Sue Parrish, is a long-time auxiliary member and representative for the Alton VFW. She testified that the VFW is a small community organization with a limited budget and staff. She said the Friday night dances are not large enough to require extra security or safety precautions. Parrish also testified that Bays was not dancing wildly or erratically.
Stirrat said bartender Rhandi Minton testified on the third day of trial. She testified that she witnessed the incident, saying Bays and Svoboda bumped back-to-back, causing Svoboda to fall to the ground. However, she said in a statement in 2015 that she did not see the incident but spoke to Bays later that evening. She further testified that she believed the dance floor was slippery due to wax.
Volunteer canteen manager Becky Willmore testified that the VFW did put dance wax out for the patrons at their request.
“She testified that while the dance wax allows patrons to better slide while dancing, it does not make the floor slippery,” Stirrat said. “Ms. Willmore further testified that no one had ever complained about the use of the dance wax, the condition of the floor, or the lack of security.”
Bays was the defendant’s final witness. He testified that he accidentally bumped into Svoboda while dancing.
“Again, there was no testimony from Mr. Bays that the floor was slippery or that he fell because of dance wax,” Stirrat said. “Rather, his testimony made clear that this was an unfortunate accident that was not caused by any actions or omissions on the part of the Alton VFW.”
In her motion for a new trial, Svoboda argued that the verdict was “against the manifest weight of the evidence.”
Tobin wrote that the defendant’s only employee, Minton, testified that she saw the incident and that patrons spreading wax on the dance floor caused the collision between Svoboda and Bays.
“With no other evidence to consider with regard to the condition of the floor, the jury should have found that defendant was negligent and then moved onto causation and damages,” the motion stated.
Tobin added that Minton testified that the patrons got the floor wax from behind the bar. Parrish and Willmore testified that it would violate the defendant’s policies and procedures if a patron went behind the bar, Tobin argued.
The Alton VFW filed a response to the motion for a new trial on Jan. 6.
“Plaintiff simply argues that the testimony of one former employee is dispositive of the entire trial,” the response stated. “Plaintiff is incorrect.”
The defendant argued that Minton never testified that she walked on the floor or felt that it was slippery and never reported the alleged condition to the VFW.
Additionally, witnesses testified that no patrons had ever slipped from floor wax before.
“Accordingly, the manifest weight of the evidence cannot be based on the testimony of one witness who did not even step on the floor on the night of the accident,” the response stated.
Madison County Circuit Court case number 15-L-671