A shopper who claims she was knocked unconscious and then robbed at the Granite City Walmart seeks to voluntarily dismiss her lawsuit after reaching a settlement agreement.
Plaintiff Christine Collins filed a motion to dismiss her complaint on Aug. 1 through attorney Ellen Burford of Burford Law Office in Granite City, stating that the parties have settled the suit.
Collins previously sought sanctions against defendants Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Christopher Hodges and Universal Protection Services LLC, doing business as Allied Universal Security Services, for allegedly failing to make payments following the settlement agreement.
The petition stated that the parties entered into a written agreement to settle the case on Feb. 28, and Burford tendered an executed release by email to the defendants. However, the defendants have allegedly failed to tender timely payment. The agreement allegedly held that payment would be provided within 10 days.
Burford attached the defendants’ confidential settlement agreement as an exhibit to the case. Allied, Wal-Mart and Hodges agreed to settle Collins’ claims against it for $7,000.
Nothing further was filed on the docket regarding Collins’ motion for sanctions.
Collins filed the complaint on Jan. 29, 2021, alleging she was at the Granite City Wal-Mart store located on West Pontoon Road on Aug. 23, 2020. She claims she was entering the store when a male suspect approached her “with great force” and caused her to lose consciousness. The suspect stole Collins’ personal belongings, including her purse, wallet, car keys and other belongings.
She argues that Wal-Mart “knew that the nature of its business, the location of its place of business and from previous experience that it was reasonably foreseeable that one of its customers would be the victim of a criminal attach (sic) while conducting business on its premises.”
Collins alleges Wal-Mart failed to provide adequate security to protect customers from an unreasonable risk of harm, failed to warn her of the attack when it knew it was imminent, failed to contact the local police, allowed a group of hostile and aggressive males to remain on its premises, failed to adequately hire and train qualified security guards and failed to retain a qualified security company.
Allied Universal Security Services was employed by Wal-Mart to field and receive complaints about unsafe conditions. It was also responsible for managing the premises to prevent the existence of unsafe shopping conditions. Collins alleges Allied Universal Security Services owed a duty to provide a reasonably safe store and parking lot.
Collins alleges the defendants failed to provide adequate security to protect customers from an unreasonable risk of harm, failed to warn her of the attack when it knew it was imminent, failed to contact the local police, allowed a group of hostile and aggressive males to remain on its premises, failed to adequately hire and train qualified security guards and failed to retain a qualified security company.
Collins claims that as a result of the attack, she suffered serious and permanent injuries, including emotional anguish and distress.
Wal-Mart and Hodges had previously argued in their answer to the complaint that if they are found liable, their fault is less than 25 percent of the total fault attributable to the plaintiff, other defendants and third parties.
Universal Protection Service argued in its answer to the complaint that it owed no duty to Collins to prevent the intentional, criminal attack by an unknown assailant. It also claimed that it did not owed a duty of care to prevent the attack because it was unaware of the assailant and implemented reasonable security measures. Allied argued that the attack could not have been reasonably prevented by the defendant.
However, Allied also argued that Collins’ claim for damages should be barred because “she had knowledge of the risks posed by her assailant and, therefore, the threat of injury posed to her was open, obvious, and available to her.”
Wal-Mart and Hodges are represented by Rebecca Van Court of DeFranco & Bradley PC in Fairview Heights.
Allied is represented by Daniel Tranen of Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP in Edwardsville.
Madison County Circuit Court case number 21-L-124