Dollar General Employee Files Lawsuit After Multiple Armed Robberies
Imagine going to work and being seriously injured twice over the course of three armed robberies. Such was the case with Timothy Ray Ramos who is now filing a lawsuit against the Dollar General chain. Ramos was stabbed and then shot in different incidents at a San Antonio location. The three robberies he experienced occurred over the course of only 12 months.
On November 21, 2017, Ramos was robbed at gunpoint but sustained no injuries in the robbery. Two weeks later, he was stabbed in the neck during a robbery attempt. Then about a year after the first incident, he was shot multiple times during a robbery.
Negligent Security Lawsuits
This would technically fall under the tort theory of negligent security. The plaintiff is accusing the chain of failing to protect its employees by having sufficient security on-premises to thwart robbery attempts. The Dollar General maintains that they provide excellent security for their customers and employees and is in compliance with all state and federal laws.
However, Dollar General doesn’t need to break the law in order to be held liable for incidents that occur on their property. This particular store allowed two attacks on a single employee and then failed to prevent another one. However, Dollar General refused to comment on the types of security features they use on-premises stating that it would render their security measures less effective.
Dollar General is named in the lawsuit along with the three men who are alleged to have committed the robberies.
Dollar Chains are Lightning Rods for Violent Robberies
The Dollar General isn’t the only dollar chain that has made its way into the news for the wrong reasons. Dollar Tree and Family Dollar have also been named as defendants or subject to investigations after security guards or other employees were injured or killed on the job. ProPublica recently issued a report showing how across the country, dollar store employees are being targeted for violence.
The question in a case like this is: Where does the shooter’s liability end and The Dollar General’s liability begin? In a negligent security lawsuit, the plaintiff is generally tasked with proving that the violent action was foreseeable. Since the employee only sued after the third armed robbery, we can safely assume that the attack was foreseeable.
If the violence is foreseeable, then the question becomes: What did the company do about it? In this case, it looks like they did nothing at all. It should also be established that, had they done something or researched what the best way to handle security was, there would have been some measure they could have taken to prevent the violence.
So, establishing liability requires that the plaintiff shows that the event was foreseeable, there was something that could be done to protect employees and keep them safer, and that the company did not take any useful measures to prevent another attack. That, in essence, is a negligent security lawsuit.
Talk to a Houston Negligent Security Attorney Today
If you’ve been injured on-premises, the Houston personal injury attorneys at Livingston & Flowers can help you hold a negligent proprietor responsible for your injuries. Call us today to schedule a free consultation and learn more about how we can help.
Resource:
businessinsider.com/dollar-general-lawsuit-former-employee-injured-robberies-texas-2020-8
propublica.org/article/how-dollar-stores-became-magnets-for-crime-and-killing
