Johnson v. ADT, LLC

377 F. Supp. 3d 1370
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Georgia
DecidedMay 2, 2019
DocketCASE NO. CV418-292
StatusPublished

This text of 377 F. Supp. 3d 1370 (Johnson v. ADT, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Johnson v. ADT, LLC, 377 F. Supp. 3d 1370 (S.D. Ga. 2019).

Opinion

WILLIAM T. MOORE, JR. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

Before the Court are Defendants ADT, LLC's and The ADT Corporation's Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 16) and Defendant Safe Streets USA, LLC's Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 17). For the following reasons, Defendants ADT LLC's and The ADT Corporation's Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 16) is GRANTED. Defendant Safe Streets USA, LLC's motion (Doc. 17) is DISMISSED AS MOOT.

BACKGROUND

This case arises from the circumstances surrounding the death of Jearlene Johnson.1 (Doc. 7 at ¶¶ 11-18.) On September 16, 2017, Decedent Johnson entered into a contract for monitoring and home security services with Defendant Safe Streets USA, LLC, an authorized dealer of Defendant ADT, LLC ("ADT"). (Id. at ¶ 11.) In reaching the agreement, Defendants were informed that Decedent Johnson suffered from Alzheimer's disease and had a tendency to wander from her home. (Id. at ¶ 12.) In the event that the alarm was triggered at Decedent Johnson's home, Defendants were instructed to contact Decedent Johnson's niece and neighbor, Sheila Archie. (Id. at ¶ 13.) On several occasions, Defendants contacted Ms. Archie when the alarm was triggered at Decedent Johnson's home. (Id. )

On December 10, 2017, the alarm was activated at Decedent Johnson's home between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. (Id. at ¶ 14.) Despite the alarm, Defendants failed to notify Ms. Archie. (Id. ) The next morning, Ms. Archie went to check on Decedent Johnson and found that Decedent Johnson had succumbed overnight to hypothermia. (Id. at ¶¶ 16-17.)

On December 10, 2018, Decedent's brother, Allen Johnson, initiated this action on the behalf of all of Decedent Johnson's beneficiaries and Decedent Johnson's estate. (Doc. 1.) In his initial complaint, *1373Plaintiff brought suit against Defendants ADT and John Does 1-10 for negligence, gross negligence, negligent training and supervision, breach of contract, fraudulent misrepresentation, and wrongful death. (Id. ) As relief, Plaintiff sought "to recover pre-death pain and suffering, funeral and burial expenses, medical expenses, and any and all other available estate claims and expenses, resulting from the death of Jearlene Johnson." (Id. at 14.) Additionally, Plaintiff requested punitive damages. (Id. )

On review, this Court identified deficiencies with respect to the jurisdictional allegations in Plaintiff's initial complaint and directed Plaintiff to file an amended complaint addressing those deficiencies. (Doc. 4.) On December 27, 2018, Plaintiff complied with this Court's directive and filed an amended complaint reasserting his previous allegations against Defendants ADT and John Does 1-10. (Doc. 7.) In the amended complaint, Plaintiff also added Defendants The ADT Corporation and Safe Streets USA, LLC as defendants in this action. (Id. )

Defendants have now filed two motions to dismiss. (Doc. 16; Doc 17.) In their nearly identical motions, Defendants contend that Plaintiff has failed to establish any possible basis for recovery and that the entirety of Plaintiff's complaint must be dismissed. Defendants allege that Plaintiff's claims fail because (1) the contract signed by Decedent Johnson bars this lawsuit, or, alternatively, limits Plaintiff's potential recovery; (2) Plaintiff's lawsuit is untimely; (3) Plaintiff's claims based on Defendants' negligence arise solely out of the contract between Decedent Johnson and Defendant ADT; and (4) Plaintiff's fraudulent misrepresentation claim is inefficiently pled and substantively insufficient.

ANALYSIS

I. STANDARD OF REVIEW

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a) (2) requires a complaint to contain "a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief." "[T]he pleading standard Rule 8 announces does not require 'detailed factual allegations,' but it demands more than an unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me accusation." Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) ). "A pleading that offers 'labels and conclusions' or a 'formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do.' " Id. (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955 ). "Nor does a complaint suffice if it tenders 'naked assertion [s]' devoid of 'further factual enhancement.' " Id. (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 557, 127 S.Ct. 1955 ) (alteration in original).

"To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to 'state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.' " Id. (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955 ). For a claim to have facial plausibility, the plaintiff must plead factual content that "allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged." Sinaltrainal v. Coca-Cola Co., 578 F.3d 1252, 1261 (11th Cir. 2009) (quoting Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937

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Bluebook (online)
377 F. Supp. 3d 1370, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/johnson-v-adt-llc-gasd-2019.