CHARLESTON – An Ohio woman says she was injured after tripping on a walkway outside of the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
Sharon Heffner filed her complaint February 16 in Kanawha Circuit Court against the City of Charleston (as owner of the civic center) and OVG Facilities, a division of Oak View Group. OVG manages the venue.
According to the complaint, Heffner was attending a Disney On Ice event at the civic center February 9, 2023. As she was walking on the premises on a walkway in front of the coliseum, Heffner says she tripped at a transition joint between concrete and a decorative stripe that crosses the pavement.
She was the transition is not smooth or uniform, and she says it was not clearly open, obvious or reasonably apparent. That made it a hazard, according to the complaint.
Heffner fell forward, striking her face and head as well as her left knee among other body parts. She says she suffered physical injuries, pain and suffering and medical expenses.
She seeks compensatory damages, pre- and post-judgment interests, court costs and other relief.
Heffner is being represented by G. Patrick Jacob of Jacobs Law Office in Charleston and by John H. Skaggs of Calwell Luce diTrapano in Charleston. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Kenneth Ballard.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number 24-C-171
