MEDIA – An Aston couple who sued Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and its operating companies for negligence connected to a leg injury suffered by one of the plaintiffs have settled the litigation.
According to documents filed with the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas on June 19, Richard and Melissa Rice lawsuit against Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack, Chester Downs & Marina LLC, Harrah’s Chester Downs Management Company LLC and Caesar’s Entertainment Operating Company Inc., all of Chester (and all collectively doing business as Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino), was settled, discontinued and ended with prejudice. Per the agreement, all parties will pay their own legal costs.
Per the Rices’ lawsuit, the plaintiffs planned to spend an evening at the casino on the night of the accident, and arrived to the entertainment facility by car.
“After exiting his car, Mr. Rice began to walk around the car to open the car for Mrs. Rice and stepped in a hole concealed by what appeared to be a rubber matting strip. When planting his feet, Mr. Rice’s left went into the hole, which caused his left leg to twist in one direction while his body went in the opposite direction,” the suit states.
“Mr. Rice immediately felt pain in his left leg, specifically in his left knee and left ankle. After Mr. Rice was able to release his foot from the hole and regain his balance, Mr. & Mrs. Rice went into the casino to alert someone of the incident.”
Casino staff later covered the hole with a wood-like plank, according to the complaint.
The plaintiffs believed the defendants should have realized the danger the hole in the parking garage could have presented to the casino’s visitors. Richard claimed to have sustained a severe or Grade III medial collateral sprain in his left knee and an anterior talofibular sprain in his left ankle in the fall.
Richard was seeking damages in excess of $50,000 plus costs, interests and other relief, with Melissa seeking equal damages for loss of consortium.
The plaintiffs were represented by Marlo Pagano-Kelleher of The Pagano Law Firm, in Media.
Delaware County Court of Common Pleas case 2017-000123
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nickpennrecord@gmail.com