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Evans v. Buffington Harbor River Boats12/8/2003
FOR PUBLICATION
Lorean and Henry Evans appeal following the jury trial in which Lorean was awarded damages for injuries she received in a fall upon property owned by Buffington Harbor Riverboats, LLC. They present three issues for our review:
I. Whether the jury relied upon extraneous prejudicial information;
II. Whether the damage award was inadequate; and
III. Whether the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc. and Design Workshop, Inc.
Cole Associates, Inc., also a defendant in the trial court, cross appeals claiming that the trial court erred in denying its Motion for Summary Judgment. We perceive no reason to address this matter because the jury found no liability on the part of Cole. The net effect is as if Cole had been awarded the summary judgment. Valet Parking Services, Inc., which was found to be partly liable for Lorean's injuries, has not filed a brief in this appeal.
We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.
Late in the evening hours of July 27, 1998, Lorean Evans finished an appointment she had at approximately 10:00 p.m. and went to a riverboat casino in Gary, arriving at approximately 1:00 a.m. She exited the casino at approximately 3:00 a.m. on July 28. She waited in line for several minutes to get her car. Eventually, a valet parking attendant gave her the keys to her car so that she could retrieve it herself. Lorean then walked across the driveway in front of the entrance to the casino pavilion upon what appeared to be a sidewalk. The concrete band progressed between a row of shrubs and ended at a retaining wall which dropped approximately thirty inches into the parking lot. Lorean fell when she stepped off of the concrete band into the parking lot. She injured her knee and had to have surgery to correct the fracture of her tibia plateau.
The following year, Lorean filed suit against Buffington Harbor Riverboats, LLC ("Buffington Harbor"), the Majestic Star Casino, LLC, and Trump Indiana, Inc. On March 13, 2000, both Majestic Star Casino and Trump Indiana were dismissed from the lawsuit by agreement of the parties. On April 14, 2000, Valet Parking Services, Inc. ("Valet Parking") and Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc. ("HHN") were added as defendants. Cole Associates, Inc., n/k/a DLZ, Indiana Inc. ("Cole"), was subsequently added as a defendant, as were Design Workshop, Inc., Rieth-Riley Construction Co., Inc., and SOSH Architects. On May 1, 2001, SOSH Architects was dismissed from the suit. Rieth-Riley sought summary judgment which Lorean did not challenge. Summary judgment was granted for Rieth-Riley on December 12, 2001. A hearing on the summary judgment motions filed by HHN, Design Workshop, and Cole was held on December 12, 2001. Summary judgment was granted for HHN and Design Workshop but denied for Cole.
A trial was conducted as to the liability of Buffington Harbor, Valet Parking, and Cole. After the presentation of a considerable amount of evidence, the jury determined that Lorean suffered total damages of $100,000. The jury determined that Lorean was 45% at fault for her fall. Further, the jury assigned 20% of the fault to Buffington Harbor and 35% to Valet Parking. The jury determined that Cole was 0% at fault. After applying the percentages of fault to the total amount of damages, the jury awarded Lorean $20,000 from Buffington Harbor and $35,000 from Valet Parking.
I. Juror Misconduct
The Evanses assert that the jury considered extraneous prejudicial information and that such information tainted the verdict. They contend that the trial court should have granted the motion for a n
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