WEST VIRGINIA RECORD

KEYSER — A Mineral County man filed a lawsuit against a property management company claiming premises negligence in 2014.

Robert Harris, individually and as parent and next friend of minor Gabby Harris, filed a complaint against WODA Group in Mineral Circuit Court, claiming major damages in a June 2014 sewer system failure at his home.

According to the filing, the plaintiff and his family were tenants at Greene Gables Apartment Complex in Ridgeley from June 2011 until June 2014.

The suit states that the apartment complex’s sewage system failed on or about June 13, 2014, and that it had done so on previous occasions. The plaintiff alleges that raw sewage backed up and overflowed his family’s toilet and fixtures, flooding their home unabated for several hours, destroying their personal property and exposing the entire family to injury.

The complaint states that the defendant breached its duty for tenants’ health and safety and was negligent in the disposal system’s design and maintenance. The suit also faults the defendant for failing to address known system deficiencies, perform routine maintenance, and operate the system with required permits and inspections.

Alleging personal injury and damage to personal property; lost wages and medical expenses; mental anguish, annoyance and inconvenience, the plaintiff seeks compensatory and punitive damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorneys’ fees, and costs.

Harris is represented by Matthew Jividen of Legal Aid of West Virginia, Inc. in Martinsburg.

Mineral Circuit Court case number 15-C-52