COOK COUNTY RECORD

A Brookfield martini bar is being sued after a customer who allegedly had too much alcohol fell to his death after being removed from the premises.

Diane Goltz, as special administrator of the Estate of Richard Land, filed suit June 3 in Cook County Circuit Court against Blue Water Bar Inc. and Danial Hitt.

According to the complaint, Land was at Blue Water Bar, also known as Blue Water Lounge, at 9016 31st St. in Brookfield on Aug. 28, when Hitt served him alcohol.

After becoming intoxicated, Goltz claims Land was physically removed from the premises by Hitt, who then allegedly left him on an elevated staircase outside his apartment. The suit states Land fell from the staircase and suffered a traumatic brain injury, resulting in his death.

Goltz accuses the defendants of carelessly attempting to transfer Land to his residence, leaving Land in an unsafe manner, failing to ensure the safe transfer of Land to his residence and negligently failing to ensure safe entry of Land into his residence.

Goltz is seeking damages in excess of the jurisdictional minimum and is represented by the Chicago firm of Henry Phillip Gruss Ltd.

Cook County Circuit Court Case No. 2014L005879.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed in Cook County Circuit Court. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt and it only represents one side of the story.