Murjani Yearwood v. Club Miami, Inc.

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: June 8, 2012
• Docket: A12A0550
• Status: Published

Opinion

SECOND DIVISION BARNES, P. J., ADAMS and MCFADDEN, JJ.

NOTICE: Motions for reconsideration must be physically received in our clerk’s office within ten days of the date of decision to be deemed timely filed. (Court of Appeals Rule 4 (b) and Rule 37 (b), February 21, 2008) http://www.gaappeals.us/rules/

June 8, 2012

In the Court of Appeals of Georgia A12A0550. YEARWOOD v. CLUB MIAMI, INC. et al.

MCFADDEN, Judge.

Murjani Yearwood sued Club Miami, Inc. and a John Doe defendant for the

pain and suffering he sustained when he was shot at the club. After a jury awarded

Yearwood $500,000, the trial court granted Club Miami’s motion for directed verdict.

Yearwood appeals, arguing that whether the security measures Club Miami

implemented were performed in a non-negligent manner was a question for the jury

to decide. But Yearwood presented absolutely no evidence that the security measures

were performed negligently. We therefore affirm the judgment in Club Miami’s favor.

Yearwood was a patron of Club Miami, a nightclub, when a fight broke out on

the dance floor. An unidentified person fired a gun, and Yearwood was hit in the

abdomen. The parties agree that Club Miami had implemented a two-step security procedure, involving four to eight security guards and uniformed law enforcement

officers. Before any patron was allowed to enter the club, the patron would be patted

down and then “wanded,” or scanned with a metal-detecting wand. There were

additional security personnel inside the club.

At the close of the evidence, Club Miami moved for a directed verdict. The trial

court reserved ruling on the motion and submitted the case to the jury, which returned

a $500,000 verdict in favor of Yearwood, allocating responsibility equally between

Club Miami and the John Doe shooter. The trial court then granted Club Miami’s

motion for directed verdict, and Yearwood filed this appeal.

1. Initially, we observe that the procedure employed by the trial court –

ruling on a directed verdict motion after the jury had returned a verdict – is authorized

under Georgia law. “OCGA § 9-11-50 (b) allows the trial court to defer ruling on a

motion for directed verdict and submit the case to the jury subject to a later

determination of the legal questions raised by the motion.” (Citation and punctuation

omitted.) Steinberg v. City of Atlanta, 213 Ga. App. 491, 492 (1) (444 SE2d 873)

(1994).

2. “A directed verdict is authorized if there is no conflict in the evidence

as to any material issue and the evidence introduced, with all reasonable deductions

2 therefrom, shall demand a particular verdict. OCGA § 9-11-50 (a). Where plaintiff

simply fails to prove his case, the direction of a verdict is proper.” (Citation and

punctuation omitted.) Steinberg, 213 Ga. App. at 493-494 (2). As the trial court

observed in its order, the facts of the case were largely uncontested. Yearwood’s “sole

argument as to liability was that because [Club Miami] had voluntarily assumed

certain security measures to prevent weapons from being brought into the club, and

despite these measures a gun was brought into the club which was used to injure

[Yearwood, Club Miami] was negligent and thus liable to [Yearwood] for his pain

and suffering.”

We adopt in part the trial court’s well-reasoned order, in which it held:

Under Georgia law, a proprietor does not become an insurer of safety by taking some precautions of behalf of invitees. Matt v. Days Inns of America, 212 Ga. App. 792, 795 (443 SE2d 290) (1994). Moreover, the fact that a proprietor has undertaken some measures to protect its patrons does not heighten the standard of care; and taking some measures does not ordinarily constitute evidence that further measures might be required. Id. See also Lau’s Corp. [v. Haskins, 261 Ga. 491, 494-495 (3) (405 SE2d 474) (1991)]. Conversely, a proprietor is not insulated from liability simply by providing security measures when those measures are proved to be inadequate. Matt, supra, 212 Ga. App. at 795[-796]. As the Supreme Court explained in Lau’s Corp., “[i]f a defendant undertakes to do more for the benefit of another person than

3 the law requires, he or she may be held liable if he or she acts unreasonably or makes the situation worse, by increasing the danger, or by misleading the plaintiff into belief that it has been removed, or by depriving the plaintiff of the possibility of help from other sources, etc.” Lau’s Corp., [261 Ga.] at 495 [n. 2 (3). (Citation omitted.)].

The gravamen of [Yearwood’s] argument is that because a gun made it past [Club Miami’s] security measures and that gun was used to injure [Yearwood], [Club Miami] must have been negligent in conducting weapons screening[s]. Without more, this argument is not persuasive inasmuch as it is rooted more in strict liability than in negligence. Contrary to [Yearwood’s] argument, in a negligence action, it is not enough for [Yearwood] to merely present evidence of his injury as evidence that [Club Miami] performed its security screenings in a negligent manner. Lau’s Corp., [261 Ga.] at 493-94 [(2)].

To succeed on this claim, [Yearwood] had the burden to present evidence at trial of how specifically [Club Miami’s] measures made the security situation worse, or how those measures were inadequate or insufficient such that negligence could be established. Id.

Yet Yearwood presented absolutely no evidence that the security measures in

place were performed in a negligent manner or worsened the situation. No witness

testified that the security personnel should have done anything differently. Yearwood

himself testified that he thought the security was sufficient. Nor did Yearwood

4 present any evidence of any prior criminal activity on the premises that may have put

Club Miami on notice that its security measures were inadequate.

Because Yearwood presented no evidence that Club Miami’s security measures

were insufficient or that it negligently performed the security measures it

implemented, the trial court correctly ruled that Club Miami was entitled to a directed

verdict. Compare Matt, 212 Ga. App. at 795-796 (whether defendant’s security

measures were adequate or whether they were performed in a negligent manner was

a jury question, given evidence that defendant had rejected safety measures that had

been recommended in light of past incidents).

Judgment affirmed Barnes, P. J., and Adams, J., concur.