BECKLEY — V.P. Management filed an amended answer in a case against it filed by a patron who allegedly slipped and fell at its hotel.
The defendant argues the complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. While the defendant admits the plaintiff did fall on its property on snow- and ice-covered surfaces, it argues it lacks the knowledge or sufficient information about the plaintiff's alleged injuries.
"This defendant asserts that the injuries or damages, if any, of the plaintiff were not caused by any act, omission or breach of duty on the part of this defendant, but by the intervening acts or omissions by other persons or corporations over which this defendant had either no control or for whose negligence or fault this defendant cannot be held legally liable to the plaintiff," the answer states.
The defendant argues that as the possessor of real property, it owes no duty of care to protect the plaintiff or others against alleged dangers that are open, obvious, reasonably apparent or as well known to the plaintiff as they are to the defendant.
Rodney W. Eastham filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia against V. P. Management, alleging it failed to maintain its premises in a reasonably safe condition.
Eastham claims that on March 22, 2018, he was a patron at the defendant's Microtel Inn & Suites in Beckley. While attempting to reach his vehicle, he fell on the snow- and ice-covered surface, landing on his left shoulder. The plaintiff claims he suffered lost wages, substantial medical expenses and pain.
The plaintiff holds V. P. Management responsible because it allegedly failed to remove the accumulated ice and failed to treat the subject area with de-icing materials, according to the suit.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment for all damages recoverable under the law. He is represented by Arden Curry of Pauley Curry in Charleston.
The defendant is represented by Ashley Justice Tucker and Edgar Allen Poe Jr. of Pullin, Fowler, Flanagan, Brown & Poe.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia case number 5:18-cv-01505
