Parents typically expect that areas and businesses specifically geared toward children will provide a safe and danger-free environment, but that is not always the case. At least one California parent has filed a premises liability suit after her two sons were injured at a children's museum. Both the museum and the city have been named as defendants in the suit.
After attending a session of summer camp at the Kidspace Children's Museum, a group of children were waiting for their parents outside of the museum. Unfortunately, a nearby pine tree fell, injuring eight of the children who attended the camp. According to the claim, the pine tree measured approximately five-stories tall.
Two of the injured children are twins, and the mother of the 6-year-old boys is seeking compensation on their behalf. Although the damages currently remain unspecified, she outlined her sons' injuries in the claim. One of the boys suffered a significant injury while the other had both a leg and arm fractured. In additional to their physical injuries, the mother also points out that both of her children have since developed psychological injuries associated with the tree incident.
There has been some dispute as to whether the tree was located on the museum's property or on an adjoining California city park, which explains why the city was added to the lawsuit. Furthermore, the tree's condition was described as dangerous, including areas of decay as well as rotted wood. In addition to these dangerous attributes, it had apparently been allowed to overgrow.
Entrusting a child's safety with an institution is an enormous statement of trust for parents. Dangerous and unsafe properties violate that trust and put both children and adults at unnecessary risk for injuries. Victims who have been injured on dangerous properties generally have to deal with enormous medical bills and ongoing emotional trauma, all of which can be addressed with a successful premises liability suit.
Source: Pasadena, CA. Patch, "Pasadena Kidspace Children's Museum Sued Over Fallen Tree", Alexander Nguyen, March 24, 2016