Tuesday, October 11, 2022
PHOTO: File
A Texas couple has sued a wedding venue in Rhode Island, after a woman said she fell during a reception, breaking her jaw and teeth.
Kathleen Salazar and her husband Gabriel Salazar said they attended their niece’s wedding at Linden Place in Bristol in October 2021 when the incident took place — and are now suing for negligence, premises liability, loss of consortium, and punitive damages.
According to the lawsuit, filed by attorney John Fulweiler in United States District Court in the District of Rhode Island, at the reception, “While Kathleen was moving between two rooms of the wedding venue, she tripped on a raised threshold, fell forward and violently impacted the floor.”
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE — SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST
“Kathleen’s teeth were broken and guests were picking up pieces of her teeth from the floor,” the lawsuit continues.
“Kathleen broke her jaw requiring multiple surgeries, injured her lumbar spine and has recently been fitted with metal orthodontic braces to try and remedy her jaw alignment – since the incident, she’s not been able to eat properly, suffers weight loss including the loss of muscle mass and requires medication to sleep because of back pain,” claims the lawsuit.
“Defendants could’ve easily prevented this incident and their recklessness in failing to do so despite Kathleen’s belief that there’s a history of similar such incidents is reason why Kathleen is seeking punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages,” according to the lawsuit.
Fulweiler did not respond to request for comment regarding allegations of other incidents.
PHOTO: Linden Place
Linden Place — and Lawsuit
According to its website, Linden Place was built in 1810 but George DeWolf, and the house is considered the “architectural crown jewel” of Bristol. It hosts a calendar of seasonal events open to the public in addition to wedding rentals.
“At all times material hereto, Defendants owed a duty to Kathleen to keep the Premises in a safe condition by, among other things, providing a warning regarding dangerous conditions like the obstruction or preventing and/or curing and/or removing dangerous conditions,” states the lawsuit. “At all times material hereto, Defendants knew of or should have known of the unsafe conditions described herein and/or these unsafe conditions existed for a long enough time such that Defendants should’ve taken steps to correct the conditions.”
“Solely as a result of the aforementioned alleged negligence and recklessness of Defendants, Plaintiff Gabriel R. Salazar has been deprived of the care, comfort and companionship of his wife Kathleen and may be so deprived for an indefinite period of time into the future,” the lawsuit continues.
The suit also names caterer Russell Morin as a defendant.
The company, when reached for comment, however, asserts it was not the caterer at the wedding
“There is a misunderstanding regarding the lawsuit filed in federal court this week by the Salazars,” said Lizzy Desibia, Vice President for Russell Morin Catering and Events. “Our Attorney will be contacting their Attorney as we were not the caterer for this event and are in no way associated with this event. “
Linden Place did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Related Articles
