It’s been freezing the past couple of days, and it’s been raining cats and dogs for hours now.
You should probably go and sprinkle some salt on the driveway and walkway in front of your house, but you’re in your pajamas, under a blanket, and you REALLY don’t feel like getting up. You’ll do it first thing in the morning, scout’s honor. But later that same evening, your cranky old neighbor slipped on the ice in your driveway and is now threatening to sue you.
Can he really do that? And will you be charged if he does?
The short answer? Maybe.
The long answer? Keep reading.
When an Injury Is No Longer ‘Just an Accident’
It’s not like every bump or bruise that happens on someone else’s property means the next step is a lawsuit or criminal charges.
For the most part, it truly is just an accident.
What else can you call slipping on a wet floor in a supermarket or tripping over a crack on a sidewalk? It stinks, yes, but it happens to everyone.
| Falls are the leading cause of injury in the U.S. (8+ million ER visits each year). – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
The good news is that, in most cases, the law treats accidents just as they are – accidents. It’s unfortunate that it happened, but there aren’t any further consequences for it.
So how does ‘just an accident’ become something serious?
Usually, it comes down to a simple idea called ‘duty of care’.
| Michigan property owners can be held liable (negligence) for injuries if they fail to take reasonable steps to address all known hazards. – Michigan Department of Attorney General |
To put it simply, that means that whoever owns the property is responsible for keeping it safe for the people who visit it. That doesn’t mean the property has to be perfect because there’s no way to prevent every single mishap, but you have to be reasonable and fix what you can on time.
There’s also something called ‘foreseeability,’ which sounds complicated, but really, it comes down to asking one question: “Could you have seen this coming?”
If you know the stairs on the porch are rotting, then you should also know that someone will get hurt on them sooner or later, and if they do, that’s a lawsuit coming your way. However, if someone collapses out of nowhere on a safe, maintained staircase because of a medical problem, then you’re good.
Foreseeability is a big factor when it comes to criminal charges because a bad outcome doesn’t automatically mean a case is criminal. There has to be carelessness involved in it; it can’t be only a simple mistake.
Another thing to factor in is pattern, if there is one.
Let’s say an accident happened, and authorities are investigating it.
If the accident is a one-time thing, they usually won’t bother with digging deep into it. But if they see that the same issue has caused hazards or even accidents before, you’re toast. They’ll start to ask questions (the uncomfortable ones), and now, the whole thing is closer to neglect than an accident.
At this point, it would be smart to look into premises liability legal help.
Real Situations Where Charges Are Possible
Let’s see where things might get problematic.
House Parties That Get Out of Control
How can you throw a silent party?
Of course, things will get a little loud, and when they do, you don’t have anything to worry about because noise alone isn’t a legal issue. But when you have a crowded house, and everyone is drinking, it can get dangerous pretty fast.
A drunk person can fall off a balcony, a fight can ensue on the staircase, whatever the case may be, if there are injuries involved, the host is in trouble. Possibly a criminal one.
Unsafe Stairs, Railings, And Walkways
If stairs and walkways aren’t in decent shape, they can be dangerous, and they can cause serious injuries. If a step breaks and you fix it the next day, that’s bad luck, and life goes on. But if that step has been broken for weeks, then the situation looks very different.
If you pair that with an icy sidewalk or loose railing, then that’s a pattern, and you already know what that means.
Rental Properties and What the Landlord Is Responsible For
Being a landlord is a job that most of them do well. But when charges come into play, it’s usually because a tenant complained about something serious, for example, they smelled gas, or it’s the middle of winter, and the heater is on the fritz. If the landlord doesn’t handle this, and then the same problem appears again after a while, you’re looking at an investigation and possibly criminal charges.
Basically, if a landlord knew there was a serious danger present and didn’t do anything about it, they would suffer the consequences.
| Michigan landlords are legally required to keep (rental) properties in a ‘safe and fit for habitation’ condition. – University of Michigan |
Conclusion
So, are you going to jail because your cranky old neighbor slipped in front of your house? Not likely.
The authorities are reasonable, after all, and they know accidents exist. They also know that most of the mishaps really are accidents and that’s that. Case closed.
It’s not the injury itself that flips the script but the story behind it. Did the owner know about potential dangers on their property? Did they have time to fix it? Has this kind of thing happened before?
That’s what prosecutors care about.
Still, if there’s ice out, maybe go and sprinkle that salt, just in case.