Jury returns $250K verdict for woman hurt at Arby’s

A Mecklenburg County jury recently awarded more than $250,000 to an elderly woman injured after being knocked down by a restroom door in a Charlotte Arby’s.

Jean Tarry was traveling in 2012 with her family through North Carolina after vacationing in Florida. The family stopped at Arby’s in Charlotte. Tarry walked in the restaurant and down the hall towards the woman’s restroom. When she turned the blind corner, the door of the men’s restroom flung open and Tarry was knocked into the wall and to the floor.

According to one of Tarry’s attorneys, Hunt Willis of Martin and Jones in Raleigh, Tarry suffered a fractured elbow and hip, which required extensive surgeries. She is now confined to a wheelchair.

Tarry had been on the 1936 Canadian National swim team and was still an avid swimmer before the accident occurred.

“Jean Tarry, a member of the 1936 Canadian National swim team, and a Word War II veteran who drove ambulances in London during the war, was enjoying her life and spending time with her family,” Willis said. “She swam laps several times a week and walked daily. After her injuries, she will be wheelchair bound for the remainder of her life. This corner was a hazard, and Ms. Tarry, as well as other customers, should have been warned about the danger.”

According to Willis, the Arby’s manager told Tarry and her family that that door was “a problem.” Willis said there were no warning signs in the restaurant hallway.

The jury awarded Tarry $250,325. Willis said her medical bills came to around $80,000, and the highest offer prior to trial was for $35,000.

Calls to the defense attorneys were not returned by press time. The defendants have appealed the verdict.

VERDICT REPORT

Type of action: Premise liability, negligence

Injuries alleged: Fractured elbow and hip

Name of case: Jean Tarry v. Brumit Restaurant Group, WTH Times & Times Oil Corporation

Case Number: 13 cvs 11606     

Court: MecklenburgCounty Superior Court

Judge: H. William Constangy

Attorneys for plaintiffs: Hunt Willis and H. Forest Horne of Martin & Jones, Raleigh

Attorneys for defendants: Ryan Bolick of Cranfill, Sumner & Hartzog, Charlotte; William   Robinson of Robinson, Elliott & Smith, Charlotte

Demand: $175,000

Highest offer: $35,000

Amount of verdict: $250,325

Date of verdict: July 28