Woman sues Costco for $14 million after cabinet allegedly falls, causing brain injury
A woman in California is suing Costco for more than $14 million after a heavy liquor cabinet display allegedly fell on her, causing severe injuries.
The shopper, Sadie Novotny, filed the lawsuit against Costco Wholesale Corporation following the March 22 incident at the company's Santa Rosa store in northern California.
According to court documents, Novotny was walking down an aisle when she alleges a large, heavy cabinet used to display liquor suddenly toppled onto her.
The lawsuit claims Novotny suffered multiple severe and permanent injuries, including a traumatic brain injury. She is seeking $9 million for pain and suffering, $5 million for emotional distress and additional damages for medical expenses and lost wages.
The case, originally filed in Alameda County Superior Court, has been moved to federal court at Costco's request. A case management conference is scheduled for Sept. 4 at the San Francisco Federal Courthouse.
According to the lawsuit, the cabinet was displayed on what's described as a defective or worn wooden pallet. The filing argues that this created an unsafe situation for shoppers, claiming the display was "set up in an unreasonably dangerous manner."
The lawsuit alleges Costco failed to properly inspect and maintain the display, arguing the company should have known about the danger and either fixed it or warned customers about the risk.
ABC News has reached out to Costco Wholesale Corporation for comment.
MORE: Cincinnati high school graduate faces deportation after routine ICE check-in
Claude Armand Wyle, Novotny's attorney, claimed to ABC News that a Costco representative told him they have a video of the incident, but won't send it to him to review.
"The employee told me that the video didn't happen the way I explained it," Wyle said. "I told her, 'Well, send it.' She then said, 'Oh no, you can only get that video through discovery.'"
"That meant I had to file a lawsuit," he added. "I couldn't investigate any further. I was stuck. If I wanted to get to the truth, I had to file a lawsuit."
Wyle told ABC News that Novotny went to the hospital an hour after the incident after she told her husband she felt "really bad."
"When she arrived at the hospital, doctors diagnosed her with a concussion," Wyle said. "She suffered a head injury. We don't know how bad it is yet."
Wyle said his client feels slightly better but still suffers from headaches and vision problems.
The lawsuit is seeking compensation for current and future medical expenses, estimated at $2 million, along with lost earnings and future earning capacity losses of approximately $2 million. Additional damages are being sought for loss of household services.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
27 minutes ago
- New York Times
Judge Signals Openness to Granting Bail to Returned Deportee
A federal judge signaled on Friday that she was open to granting bail to Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, one week after he was returned to the United States to face criminal charges following his wrongful deportation to El Salvador. If the judge, Barbara D. Holmes, does end up denying the Justice Department's request to detain Mr. Abrego Garcia as he awaits trial, it would be a significant rebuke of the Trump administration, which has repeatedly accused him of being a dangerous criminal, even a terrorist. But it would also represent a Pyrrhic victory for him and his defense team because, as Judge Holmes pointed out, he would almost certainly be taken into custody by immigration officials. Judge Holmes declined to make a final decision on the question of bail at a daylong hearing in Federal District Court in Nashville where Mr. Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty to a two-count federal indictment unsealed last Friday. The indictment, which was obtained in May while he was being held in Salvadoran custody, charged him with having taken part in a yearslong conspiracy to smuggle undocumented immigrants across the United States as a member of the violent street gang MS-13. The judge said she intended to issue a written decision about Mr. Abrego Garcia's bail 'sooner rather than later.' During the hearing, federal prosecutors threw everything they had at Mr. Abrego Garcia in an effort to persuade Judge Holmes that he was a flight risk and a danger to the community. In an unusual move, the presentation was made personally by Robert E. McGuire, the acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Mr. McGuire brought up two domestic violence complaints that Mr. Abrego Garcia's wife had filed against him years ago. He accused the defendant, a Salvadoran man who had been living in Maryland at the time of his expulsion, of transporting children as part of the smuggling operation. And he asserted there was evidence that Mr. Abrego Garcia had sexually harassed some of his young female passengers. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Washington Post
30 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Minnesota's election safeguards stopped a voter fraud scheme in its tracks, secretary of state says
MINNEAPOLIS — Two people have been charged with conspiracy to commit voter registration fraud in a case that shows Minnesota's election safeguards work and prevented anyone from voting illegally, Secretary of State Steve Simon said Friday. The charges announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office allege that Ronnie Williams and Lorraine Lee Combs generated fictitious names and other data they used to fill out Minnesota voter registration forms in 2021 and 2022.
CNN
30 minutes ago
- CNN
Marine detains man outside federal building in Los Angeles
Video shows a marine detaining a man while standing guard at a federal building in Los Angeles, CA. CNN has reached out to the U.S. Marine Corps for more information.
