MONROE — One of the five lawsuits the city has been handling came to a close in March with a dismissal after the judge found an uneven sidewalk does not fall under the description of a “compelling danger.”
Green County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Vale gave an oral ruling Feb. 21. The case was officially dismissed March 8. In his decision, Vale agreed with the city’s attorneys Ted Waskowski and Kyle Engelke of Madison-based Stafford Rosenbaum LLP that the city was immune from the lawsuit due to state statute 893.80, which outlines that municipalities do not have to pay more than $50,000 to an individual with a claim against them.
The claim was brought by city resident Sandra Zuelke and her husband Richard. Zuelke was walking along an alley at 13th Street and 29th Avenue on June 8, 2017, when she tripped on a protruding sidewalk panel. According to court documents, Zuelke required surgery after breaking three bones in her right wrist. She also suffered multiple bruises and abrasions. As a result of the fall, she has a lack of range of motion and loss of strength in her wrist as well as scarring.
Monroe had denied a claim brought against the city by not responding to it. Zuelke’s attorney, Greg Knoke of Knoke, Ingebritsen & Kind Law, filed the suit exceeding $50,000, claiming higher medical costs and loss of the ability to perform everyday tasks.
Though court documents indicate Monroe Director of Public Works Al Gerber noted the area as a hazard and the broken sidewalk was repaired after the fall took place, Vale approved a motion for dismissal because, he said, the city policy does not require every discrepancy in sidewalk grade reported to the city be fixed immediately.
“If we went around the city of Monroe today I couldn’t say how many places might pose a similar type risk,” Vale said, according to a transcript of the proceeding. “The city has a duty to act in a reasonable fashion to address those issues, and you fall down a six-foot trench that is a known and compelling danger. You might trip on a sidewalk, but that’s not a known and compelling danger.”
The trench was in reference to other case law cited during the lawsuit proceedings. Vale said it dictates the government is not required to protect the public “from every manifest danger. It has to be more than the mere possibility of harm.”
The city can not make every single part of it safe within a short time, Vale noted, adding that potholes are a constant concern within the area but are not addressed immediately simply because they may cause harm.
Knoke has brought a suit against the city himself for injuries gained due to a fall on a city curb. He filed a claim with the city in January 2017 roughly two weeks after he said he slipped on ice and fell while attempting to get out of his car on the street across from his office in the 1900 block of 10th Street. His argument for the suit, in which he also looks to exceed $50,000, blames the city and makes a claim that it “breached its statutory duty” by allowing ice accumulation for more than three weeks.
A broken hip left Knoke with medical care and a loss of income due to rehabilitation. He argued the statute should be exceeded for a payout of more than $50,000 due to pain and suffering and rehabilitative care in a nursing home. Knoke and his wife Julie are named as plaintiffs in the suit. Green County Circuit Court Judge James Beer ordered on Dec. 6 that application of the Wis. Stat. 893.80 be honored and plaintiffs would only be eligible for $50,000 each if the suit were successful.
According to court records, Knoke’s attorney Jennifer Limbach of Kasieta Legal Group LLC of Madison requested a jury trial in August after attorneys representing Monroe did the same in mid-July. The final pre-trial proceeding is set for Aug. 13.