California man sues over slip and fall at Walgreens

A California man is suing a retail chain over a 2013 fall that he asserts left him with a broken hip.

Candido Laureano of Burbank, Calif., filed suit March 12 in Cook County Circuit Court against Walgreen Co.

According to the complaint, Laureano parked his vehicle in the defendant’s lot at 5036 S. Cottage Grove Ave. in Chicago on Oct. 28, 2013, when he slipped and fell while walking toward the shopping cart area. Paramedics transported him to the hospital, where he contends he was diagnosed with contusions, swelling and a broken left hip.

Laureano accuses Walgreens of failing to maintain a safe shopping environment and being negligent by failing to erect warning barriers around an area of the ground that was covered with a wet, oily substance.

The store, according to the complaint, sold automotive products, which feasibly could leak onto the ground while in use, and therefore should have been more diligent in property maintenance.

Laureano seeks damages in excess of $300,000, plus attorney fees and costs. He is represented by attorney Sammy Ward Lacey of Chicago.

Cook County Circuit Court case number: 2015L002544.