CAUSED HIS OWN INJURY BY USING WRONG MEANS OF EXIT
GC was working on a construction site and was injured when he exited the area via a “wooden cross brace” which collapsed under his weight and caused him to fall some six feet.
When he later filed a personal injury case against the City of New York, the New York City Department of Design and Construction, and the Queens Borough Public Library, alleging common-law negligence and Labor Law violations, the Queens County Supreme Court ended up dismissing the case against everyone except the City of New York.
On appeal, the Appellate Division, Second Department, thought the case wasn’t maintainable against the municipality, either.
Apparently, the wooden brace that GC used was not intended to be a ramp or walkway and GC was specifically instructed to use ladders for that purpose. Since the incident was not triggered by a “dangerous condition,” and given that the City didn’t have “actual or constructive notice” of such a condition, the AD2 thought the City should also be left out of the case, particularly since GC’s “conduct was the sole proximate cause of his injuries.”
Ironically, they kicked GC down the ladder there ….
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DECISION