Griffin v. Prairie Dog Ltd. P'ship
| Decision Date | 22 May 2019 |
| Docket Number | No. 1-17-3070,1-17-3070 |
| Citation | 2019 IL App (1st) 173070,133 N.E.3d 15,433 Ill.Dec. 667 |
| Parties | Michael GRIFFIN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. PRAIRIE DOG LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, d/b/a Mullen's Bar and Grill, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
Michael Resis and Mari Ann Novy, of SmithAmundsen LLC, and Jeffrey Tabares, of Law Offices of Marc E. Abramson, both of Chicago, for appellant.
Peter V. Bustamante and Claudia E. Sainsot, both of Chicago, for appellee.
¶ 1 Defendant, Prairie Dog Limited Partnership, doing business as Mullen's Bar and Grill (hereinafter referred to as defendant, Mullen's, or the bar), appeals the jury verdict and judgment entered in favor of plaintiff, Michael Griffin, for injuries sustained as a result of defendant's negligent hiring and training of security personnel at Mullen's. After a second trial, the jury awarded $ 275,000 in damages, reduced by Griffin's 15% contributory negligence, for a total judgment of $ 233,750. On appeal, defendant asks this court to (1) grant a new trial, (2) enter a remittitur of $ 145,000, or (3) reinstate the verdict and judgment from the 2016 trial. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.
¶ 3 On Saturday, September 13, 2014, Griffin fractured his wrist when he was roughly escorted out of the bar by Trent Washington, one of defendant's employees. The second amended complaint alleged that defendant was negligent in failing to interview, conduct background checks, review personal references, keep records, and provide training for the bar's bouncers and that such negligence resulted in Griffin's injuries.
¶ 5 After a three-day jury trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of Griffin on September 2, 2016. The jury found damages to be $ 46,122 and itemized the award as follows on the provided verdict form:
"Loss of a normal life experienced and reasonably certain to
be experienced in the future. $46,122
The pain and suffering experienced and reasonably certain to
be experienced in the future as a result of the injuries. $0"
The jury also found that Griffin was 49% negligent and reduced his award for damages accordingly to $ 23,522.22.1
¶ 6 Griffin moved for a new trial solely on the issue of damages, arguing that the jury's verdict was manifestly inadequate for awarding $ 0 for pain and suffering. Defendant responded that the jury properly discredited Griffin's subjective evidence of his pain and suffering. Defendant requested that, if a new trial was granted, it be on all issues because liability and damages were closely intertwined in this case. The motion was denied by the trial court after briefing and oral arguments.2 In addressing the motion, the court only noted that it believed the jury was subject to confusion over the wording on damages due to lines in the verdict form that were combined. On January 17, 2017, the trial court, sua sponte , granted a new trial on all issues.3
¶ 8 Prior to the second jury trial, Griffin filed an emergency motion on June 5, 2017, to continue the trial and reopen discovery due to newly discovered evidence of Washington's out-of-state criminal convictions. The motion was denied, and the case proceeded to a hearing on the pending motions in limine . The trial court ruled on over 50 motions in limine , including one addressing Washington's convictions. A majority of these were granted without objection, and those pertinent to this appeal will be discussed with defendant's claims. The evidence adduced during the second trial was as follows.
¶ 10 Griffin testified that around 10:30 p.m. on September 13, 2014, he and his then-girlfriend, Shauna Nugent, met Nugent's roommate, Ruth Cawley, at Mullen's. That night, Griffin consumed six or seven drinks, including wine at dinner before beer and mixed drinks at the bar. At closing time, around 2 a.m. on September 14, Griffin finished his drink, grabbed a jacket, and was the first of their group to walk towards the exit. He heard Cawley, who was about 10 paces behind him, calling after him to say that he had grabbed the wrong jacket. Griffin stopped approximately 10 feet from the exit to turn and look back; however, the next thing he recalled was sitting on the ground outside the bar.
¶ 11 Griffin was unsure of how long he sat on the ground and had no recollection of how he ended up outside with his back against the wall and his legs out in front of him. He felt a lot of pain in his left wrist and had scratches behind his ear and a big lump on the back of his head. Nugent and Cawley were in front of him and eventually helped him to his feet while other people were standing nearby. Griffin was taken to the hospital by ambulance where he completed a CT scan and X-rays. His left wrist was placed in a splint with instructions to follow up with an orthopedic doctor because he likely had a wrist fracture. He spent the rest of the night at the hospital and filed a police report in the morning. He also delayed his return home to New York due to the pain in his wrist and to retain legal representation in Chicago.
¶ 12 Griffin denied being intoxicated to the point of slurring his words or stumbling around. He further denied being cut off from ordering drinks, dancing, and provoking or resisting the actions of the security staff at Mullen's. It was also established for the record that Griffin had black hair and a black beard.
¶ 14 Washington testified that on September 13, a regular customer was having a birthday party and Griffin was a part of the "birthday entourage." That night, the bar was crowded and Washington was alerted to a bar patron, who he identified as Griffin, bumping into the deejay's equipment. According to Washington, this information was relayed by a manager. Washington positioned himself near the deejay and monitored the situation. Griffin continued dancing with a woman and enjoying the birthday party until the end of the night. Although he was behaving "wild," Washington did not eject Griffin because he was with the group that included regular customers.
¶ 15 However, as the bar was clearing out, Griffin did not want to leave. His girlfriend had already walked out, but Griffin did not follow. Washington put his arm out to stop Griffin from returning to the bar, either to try grabbing a jacket or to finish his drink. Griffin tried to push past him. Washington "swung [Griffin] around and showed him *** the door." Griffin then called Washington a derogatory name and tried to hit Washington with his elbow. Washington blocked Griffin's elbow by grabbing it with one hand and then pushed him out the door in one motion. Griffin went out the door face forward. Washington further testified that he acted alone, although another employee, Brian Page, may have opened the front door as they approached. Washington did not see Griffin fall. After pushing Griffin out, Washington walked back into the bar to resume his duties and never saw Griffin again. He was not asked to file an incident report, and he left shortly after his shift ended.
¶ 16 Washington's identification of Griffin was challenged on cross-examination, and he stated that he did not know the names of the parties involved and could not give a description of Griffin. He simply "ha[d] a good memory" and could remember the individual involved in the incident "once I s[aw] him."
¶ 18 Nugent testified that she married Griffin in December 2016, but at the time of the incident, Nugent and Griffin were newly dating. They went to Mullen's to meet up with her then-roommate Cawley and other friends. Between 10:30 p.m. or 11 p.m. to closing around 2 a.m. Nugent had three or four drinks in addition to an earlier glass of wine at dinner. Nugent believed that Griffin appeared sober and recalled that their group remained on the other side of the bar away from the deejay throughout the night.
¶ 19 Nugent confirmed Griffin's testimony regarding their departure from the bar. Nugent further testified that she saw a bouncer suddenly come from the left, grab Griffin by the chest, and aggressively shove him out the door in a manner similar to a rugby or football tackle. She believed that the action was completely unprovoked and denied hearing any exchange of words or seeing Griffin resist. Nugent did not see or hear Griffin hit the wall outside. She ran to him and found him sitting against the wall, unconscious, with his head down. His shirt was ripped and there was blood on the back of his head. She could not recall how long he remained unconscious, but she waited with him for the ambulance.
¶ 20 As they waited, she was approached by Justin Flynn, another bar patron, who provided his number and expressed his concern over what happened. She also stated that a bar manager named Bill checked in with them, but she did not remember much else. She accompanied Griffin to the hospital and stayed until he was released. In the morning, Griffin was "more himself," and he remembered the bouncer grabbing him. She accompanied him to the police station so that he could file a police report before bringing him back to her place. Griffin managed to sleep for a few hours but woke up crying from the pain in his arm.
¶ 21 Cawley testified consistently with Griffin and Nugent about the incident resulting in Griffin's removal from the bar around closing. She further testified that she had arrived at the bar around 8 p.m. for dinner and drinks and to celebrate a friend's birthday. She remembered Griffin and Nugent arriving around 11:30 p.m. and that they stayed at the same table at the bar with her for the rest of the night. Around 12:30 p.m., Cawley's friend, Martin Gallagher, who had fair brown hair with no facial hair, was escorted out of the bar. Gallagher was drunk, stumbling,...
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Introduction
...order opened the door on the issue. Final judgment for plaintiff was reversed. ILLINOIS Griffin v. Prairie Dog Limited Partnership , 133 N.E.3d 15, 38 (Ill. App. Ct. 2019). In considering whether violation of a motion in limine is reversible error, the court considers whether the order is s......