Maurice Owens fell down dramatically in an elevator at Washington, D.C.’s Potomac Avenue Metro station, and blamed it on a banana peel. Authorities say that not only did a surveillance camera show him dropping the peel himself, it also caught him glancing up at least three times at the camera itself before the incident. [Washington Post]
3 Comments
I did a little (admittedly not much) digging to see if I could locate the case, but to no avail. I’d be interested to know at which point in the case this video was produced and whether this guy was representing himself. Even the most fervent ambulance chaser wouldn’t file suit if the video was produced at the claim stage. Morals, ethics, and all that good nonsense aside, what lawyer throws money away on a case that can’t win?
The third time he looks at the camera he decides the camera isn’t working. You can’t fix stupid.
A banana peel would be the worst thing. The better play would be to make it some sort of soap that is used by the Metro Station. Also, don’t make it at a Metro Station anyway. Pick anywhere else.
My holiday gift for those who are hypocritical enough to both read Overlawyered and fake their own slip and fall case. But, even with my advice, you are going to need some holiday magic to make it all work. Because your chances of being successful are about one in a thousand. This is pretty dumb and extreme too. Most purely manufactured accident claims are bus jumpers and this does happen with great frequency.
Adam, most plaintiffs’ lawyers handling a slip and fall case of this size against the DC Metro is not going to go down and watch the video. He or she is just going to get hit with it at trial or during discovery. Most likely they produced it in discovery, the lawyer dropped the case and they brought the fraud charges. Good hustle from the Metro who I though would just drop it and move on.