Mexican restaurant to blame for slip

MARTINSBURG - A Berkeley County woman says the restaurant at which she was eating is to blame for her slip and fall.

Jeanne Schieferstein filed suit Aug. 17 in Berkeley Circuit Court against Viva Mexico Family Restaurant, claiming the restaurant's floor pad was dangerous.

On June 1, Schieferstein says she slipped on a floor pad that was not visible to her as she walked through the entrance.

"The material believed to be a type of flooring pad was in nature a hidden danger, trap, snare, pitfall or the like," the complaint says.

She says the restaurant owed her a duty to maintain the premises in a safe condition, to inspect the premises, to warn her of a defect on the premises and to repair the defect.

"As a direct and proximate result of the carelessness and negligence of the defendant, the plaintiff was caused to be injured in and about her body, body chemistry and psyche; and inasmuch as all or part of her injuries are permanent and lasting in nature, she has and will in the future suffer great pain of body and mind," the complaint says.

She charges the restaurant with negligence and vicarious liability and seeks compensatory damages for lost earnings and diminished capacity to earn and enjoy a normal life.

Terrance Britt of Britt-Reed Law Offices in Martinsburg is representing her.

Judge David Sanders has been assigned the case.

Berkeley Circuit Court case number 06-C-606