PHILADELPHIA – A Delaware County couple allege that when the husband-plaintiff arrived at the Federal Reserve Bank in Philadelphia for a ceremony in which he was an invited guest, he was seriously injured when a security door opened into his head.
Michael Rowling and Lori Rowling of Havertown first filed suit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas on Sept. 10 versus Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and Aeroturn, LLC of Oxford, Conn.
“On Nov. 18, 2019, at about 12:30 p.m., while attempting to gain access to the premises for a ceremony to which he was invited, one of the security entrance doors, suddenly and without warning, opened into plaintiff Michael Rowling’s head, causing him to suffer serious and/or permanent injuries,” the suit says.
“At all times relevant hereto, there were no relevant warnings affixed to or near the said security entrance door. Plaintiff Michael Rowling’s injuries were caused directly as a result of the negligence and carelessness of the defendants and were due in no manner to any acts or omissions on the part of the plaintiff.”
The suit claims that the defendants were collectively negligent for injuries suffered by plaintiff Michael Rowling, and that the defendants failed to inspect, maintain and repair the security doors in question.
“As a direct result of the aforementioned acts and/or omissions of the defendant Bank, plaintiff Michael Rowling suffered serious and permanent injuries, including, but not limited to the following: Blunt head trauma, closed head injury, concussion, headache, vertigo, imbalance, left peripheral vestibular loss, left peripheral vestibular injury/involvement, paretic in nature and motion intolerance, along with anxiety, stress and nervous reaction, aggravation of all known and unknown conditions along with other severe and permanent injuries to the bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves and tissues of plaintiff Michael Rowling’s entire body and limbs,” the suit states.
The suit was removed to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Oct. 1.
For counts of negligence and loss of consortium, the plaintiff is seeking damages, jointly and severally, not in excess of $50,000, plus interest, delay damages, costs and such other relief as is just and proper.
The plaintiffs are represented by Jeffrey R. Lessin, Mark T. Richter and Ty Patrick Ryan of Jeffrey R. Lessin & Associates, in Philadelphia.
The defendants are represented by Dishon J. Dawson of Bunker & Ray, also in Philadelphia.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case 2:21-cv-04325
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 210900657
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com