Should the Kroger victims sue the grocery store?

By: Darrell Castle

As a Memphis personal injury attorney, one passion of mine is to help those people who are hurt on someone’s property due to that property owner’s negligence. These typically come in the form of slip and fall accidents in grocery stores, hotels, banks and similar establishments.

However, they can sometimes come in other forms, which leads me to the Kroger incident that happened this past weekend.

If you live in Memphis, or in the region, then you’re probably well-aware of the three people injured in a mob beating at the Memphis Kroger at Poplar and Highland.

The incident occurred around 9:15pm on Saturday when dozens of teenagers ran from CiCi’s Pizza to the Kroger in the same shopping center and beat up one customer and two Kroger employees at random. The beating was recorded on video by a bystander and then surfaced online, going viral over the weekend and following week.

This video has been studied, analyzed and commented on. There have been press conferences, interviews and reports every day. It’s a tragic event and justice needs to be served.

One question I haven’t really seen asked, publicly at least, is whether or not Kroger has any liability in this matter?

Should Kroger be held liable for not having adequate security and letting this happen? The victims in this incident were beaten unconscious, resulting in hospital visits. And that’s just their physical effects – what about emotional and mental effects because of this incident?

Who pays for their hospital bills, pain and suffering? Should Kroger have to pay? Or are the victims stuck with paying those bills themselves?

This is a very unusual event, so my guess is that this case would be a difficult one to bring, but it’s definitely worth looking into. There was relatively no one there to stop this late-night riot.

Was it reasonably foreseeable that this attack would happen and should Kroger have staffed security to prevent it? If not this event, then certainly Kroger and other large shopping areas now have clear warning so future events could be different.

Workers’ compensation should at least be in the picture for the employees injured on the job. They were doing their job outside in the parking lot when they were attacked by this mob. A workers’ compensation lawyer Memphis, TN trusts can help you file workers’ compensation in a timely manner.

If you’re ever injured on a company’s, or someone’s, property and you think ownership was negligent, causing your injuries, it’s always important to speak to an experienced personal injury attorney. An experienced personal injury attorney will review the case detail by detail and determine if you’re eligible for compensation for your pain, suffering, medical bills, etc, and how much.

You need an attorney you can trust, though – one who’ll walk and talk you through the process and treat you as a valued client, not just a case number. Darrell Castle & Associates has received multiple Client Distinction Awards from Martindale-Hubbel for client satisfaction, so you’re in good hands here.

Call (901) 327-1212 or fill out one of the contact forms on this page to schedule a free consultation with an experienced attorney.