On the afternoon of February 17, 2004, Verdell was visiting a resident of an apartment complex in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia. Upon leaving her friend’s apartment later that evening, Verdell had no alternative but to exit via a stairwell that was located within the common areas of the apartment complex. It was the duty of the owner of the complex and its managing agent to maintain this stairwell in a safe manner, but they had failed to properly maintain adequate lighting despite repeatedly complaints from tenants. There were several light fixtures, but the bulbs had all burned out.
Because the stairwell was so dark, Verdell was unable to determine when she had reached the landing. When she thought that she had reached the landing, she was actually standing on the next-to-last step. When she stepped forward, thinking that she was on level ground, she fell to the ground landing hard on her right side.
Verdell’s impact with the ground caused her head and neck to hyperextend, resulting in an injury to her cervical spine. She also sustained injuries to her low back. Verdell had experienced some neck and back problems before this fall, but, in the weeks, months and years that followed, Verdell experienced head, neck, shoulder and back discomfort in a way, and to a degree, that she has never previously experienced.
Verdell sought medical attention for these problems and the bills starting mounting up, reaching almost $25,000. She came to Mr. Render Freeman for help with the insurance companies.
Pre-suit negotiations with the insurance company were a waste of time. The insurance adjusters blamed Verdell for the fall despite the fact that she had never visited this complex before at night time and had no way of knowing that the stairwell would be dark when she left her friends apartment after dark.
Mr. Freeman filed suit on behalf of Verdell against the complex owner and manager. Mr. Freeman’s investigation discovered that the complex had altered documents regarding the maintenance of the stairwell. The complex produced a report stating that the stairwell lights had been checked and were operational on the night that Verdell fell. But Mr. Freeman’s team located the former employee who had supposedly filed this report. This employee testified that the report was a fake! As a result of this discovery, the insurance company caved in and paid $250,000 to settle the claim.
