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Ortiz v. Chillicothe Correctional Institution6/1/2005
MEMORANDUM DECISION
{ } On August 18, 2004, plaintiff, Rocco Ortiz, an inmate incarcerated at defendant, Chillicothe Correctional Institution ("CCI"), suffered personal injury while using the West bathroom facilities at defendant's institution. Specifically, plaintiff's fingers were lacerated when he attempted to close a window in the CCI bathroom area and the window frame fell upon his left hand. Plaintiff received prompt medical treatment for the lacerations to his fingers. Seven sutures were required to close the wound on plaintiff's left index finger and eight sutures were needed for the wound on his left middle finger. Topical medication was applied to the lacerations. The injured areas were bandaged and plaintiff was released back to CCI with instructions to have the sutures removed ten to fourteen days after the date of the injury. According to plaintiff, the sutures were removed by a CCI nurse twenty days after he received treatment. Plaintiff asserted his finger injuries are permanent. Plaintiff stated, "I now have (2) two permanent scars, a lump on the middle finger, and limited range of motion on the middle fingers of my left [hand]."
{ } Plaintiff has contended his hand injury was proximately caused by negligence on the part of defendant in maintaining a hazardous condition on the CCI premises. Plaintiff professed the West bathroom window at CCI constituted a latent defect and defendant should bear liability for any personal injury resulting from coming into contact with this hazard. Therefore, plaintiff filed this complaint seeking to recover $2,500.00 for pain and suffering for the finger injuries he suffered on August 18, 2004. In his complaint, plaintiff pointed out his injury occurred in October, 2004, although submitted treatment records and other documents including a grievance filed by plaintiff, list the date of the injury as August 18, 2004.
{ } Plaintiff offered a written description of the incident forming the basis of this claim. Plaintiff related, " hen I entered the bathroom a window was open and being that it was in October, it was cold, so I noticed that there was a stick hold the window up and open." Apparently plaintiff decided to close the open window without asking for any assistance from fellow inmates or CCI personnel. In order to shut the window plaintiff noted, "I attempted to lift the window to close it and it wouldn't move." Plaintiff asserted he then decided to close the window by removing the stick supporting the window. Plaintiff further asserted, as he pulled the supporting stick from the window, he "immediately noticed the entire window dislodged, from its frame." Plaintiff maintained he tried to stop the falling window by catching it in his left hand before it hit the sill. However, the weight of the window was too much for plaintiff to hold with one hand resulting in the window pinching plaintiff's hand against the window sill.
{ } Plaintiff surmised, "the track, which should have carried the weight of the window was completely broken." Plaintiff stated he was able to pull his trapped hand from under the window upon, "exerting a great amount of effort." After washing his injured hand in a nearby sink and wrapping his fingers in a wash cloth, plaintiff recalled he then reported the injury occurrence to a CCI Corrections Officer. While receiving initial medical treatment for his injury at the CCI infirmary, plaintiff noted a CCI employee identified as C.J. Brown admitted knowing about the broken bathroom window and previous injuries caused by this window. Plaintiff also noted he subsequently learned an inmate identified as John Allen had been injured by the West bathroom window at sometime in 2002.
{ } Defend
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