Hartman v. Retailers & Manufacturers Distribution Marking Service, Inc.

929 F. Supp. 2d 581, 35 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 305, 2013 WL 935834, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32805
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Virginia
DecidedMarch 8, 2013
DocketCivil Action No. 7:12-cv-00199
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 929 F. Supp. 2d 581 (Hartman v. Retailers & Manufacturers Distribution Marking Service, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hartman v. Retailers & Manufacturers Distribution Marking Service, Inc., 929 F. Supp. 2d 581, 35 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 305, 2013 WL 935834, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32805 (W.D. Va. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

GLEN E. CONRAD, Chief Judge.

This case is before the court on the defendants’ motions to dismiss. For the reasons explained below, the court will deny in part and grant in part the motions filed by Cosmetic Essence, Inc. and Retailers & Manufacturers Distribution Marking Service, Inc., and will grant SunStates Security LLC’s motion in its entirety.

I. Factual Background

This civil suit arises from a violent sexual assault that occurred in the parking lot outside the victim’s and her attacker’s shared place of employment. The plaintiff, Betty Hartman, was assaulted by Nathaniel Martin after leaving work one night. Each was employed by co-defendants Cosmetic Essence, Inc. (“CEI”) and Retailers & Manufacturers Distribution Marking Service, Inc. (“R & M”).

CEI owns a cosmetic manufacturing plant in Roanoke. CEI and R & M were parties to a labor agreement under which R & M provided staffing at the facility. The agreement required R & M to conduct background checks on all applicants before placing any employees at the facility. The agreement also provided that CEI and R & M shared the responsibility of ensuring that the facility provided safe working environment. In 2002, CEI entered into a security agreement with SunStates LLC (“SunStates”), whereby SunStates would provide security for the facility, including

[583]*583the parking lot. The plaintiff alleges that SunStates acted at the behest of R & M and CEI, and that those two companies had control over how SunStates carried out its security obligations.

CEI hired Martin on February 25, 2010, shortly after the plaintiff was hired. At the time, Martin was a registered sex offender, having been convicted of aggravated sexual battery of a child under the age of 13 in April of 2008. Neither CEI nor R & M conducted a background check on Martin prior to hiring him. The plaintiff alleges that the defendants had a practice of hiring sex offenders and other convicted criminals because they provided a source of cheap labor. The plaintiff also alleges that the defendants knew or should have known that there was a significant history of crime in the vicinity of the facility. Additionally, the plaintiff alleges that the parking lot was dimly lit and had poor visibility. The plaintiff states that these conditions created an ongoing risk of sexual assault at the facility that R & M and CEI knew or should have known about.

Prior to the incident giving rise to the suit, the plaintiff complained to her floor supervisor about Martin making vulgar comments and unwanted sexual advances to her. The supervisor told the plaintiff that he would take care of the problem, and he would try not to schedule the two to work together. The plaintiff states that she usually tried to have friends escort her out to her car after work because of concerns for her safety, particularly a fear of Martin.

During her shift on May 11, 2010, Martin assaulted and battered the plaintiff on multiple occasions by touching her leg, thigh, and groin area. After the plaintiffs shift ended that night, she waited until Martin clocked out and left the facility so she could avoid meeting him in the parking lot. After he left, she exited the building through a different door and proceeded to her car alone. As she approached her car, Martin pulled up alongside her and engaged in a violent, sexual assault that lasted fifteen minutes. The plaintiff repeatedly screamed for help in the middle of the parking lot, but no one came to her aid. Ms. Hartman alleges that SunStates was supposed to have at least three security officers on site at all times, and ordinarily had one stationed in the parking lot. Additionally, SunStates was expected to monitor the facility via closed circuit surveillance cameras. However, on the night of the incident, there were no guards in the parking lot, and no one came to offer help at any point during the fifteen minute assault.

The following day, the plaintiff called the police to report the assault, and Martin was arrested. He later pled guilty in Virginia state court to a charge of rape with an animate object. The plaintiff attempted to return to work a week after the incident but was forced to resign because of emotional distress resulting from the incident.

The plaintiff alleges five claims for relief: (1) assault and battery against R & M and CEI under a respondeat superior theory of liability; (2) negligent hiring against R & M and CEI for hiring Martin; (3) negligent retention of an unfit employee against R & M and CEI for failing to let Martin go after he exhibited threatening and improper behavior against the plaintiff; and (4) a general negligence claim against R & M and CEI for creating a dangerous work environment, and (5) a negligence claim against SunStates for failing to fulfill its security obligations on the night of the incident. The plaintiff also seeks punitive damages under each count.

II. Discussion

A. Counts One, Two, and Three

Each of the defendants has filed a separate motion to dismiss the complaint under [584]*584the theory that the Virginia Worker’s Compensation Act (“VWCA”) offers the exclusive remedy for the plaintiff.

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929 F. Supp. 2d 581, 35 I.E.R. Cas. (BNA) 305, 2013 WL 935834, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32805, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hartman-v-retailers-manufacturers-distribution-marking-service-inc-vawd-2013.