A Cook County jury has entered its verdict for a Chicago ironworker who tripped over demolition debris at a construction site. The plaintiff, 52 year-old Robert Petrouski, was performing ironwork on a bridge that was being demolished by the defendant, Bradenburg Industrial Service Co. when he was injured. The jury found in favor of the plaintiff and entered a verdict of $436,000 against the defendant in Robert Petrouski v. Brandenburg Industrial Service Co., 06 L-10628.
On October 11, 2004, Mr. Petrouski, a journeyman ironworker, was working below the bridge deck that the Brandenburg employees were demolishing. Mr. Petrouski was carrying equipment to perform his construction job when he tripped over a piece of demolition debris. As a result of his Chicago construction site injury, Petrouski suffered a lumbar disc herniation and a fragmentation of his disc.
While Petrouski contended that the debris he tripped on was left in his work area by Brandenburg’s demolition crew, the demolition company denied that it was performing work above that area. Furthermore, Brandenburg went on to allege that the debris which caused Petrouski’s fall was in fact left in the area by another company.
During the Chicago personal injury trial, Brandenburg contended that the plaintiff had overstated the extent of his injuries from his fall at the construction site and that some of his current injuries were related to his longstanding history of back problems.
Furthermore, Brandenburg alleged that Petrouski had contributed to his own fall because the plaintiff was carrying a piece of equipment at the time of his fall. Had he not been carrying the equipment, Brandenburg contended that Petrouski would have been able to avoid the debris that he tripped over.
While the jury found in favor of the plaintiff for a verdict of $650,000, Brandbenburg’s claims of Petrouski’s comparative fault paid off; the Illinois jury reduced the verdict by 33% after finding the plaintiff partly responsible for his own construction site injury. After it was reduced, the ultimate verdict to Mr. Petrouski was $436,095, with $400,000 for future pain and suffering; $175,000 for future disability; $25,888 for past medical expenses; $50,000 for future medical expenses.
However, Brandenburg was not pleased with the jury’s decision and its attorneys filed post-trial motions with the Cook County judge. Those motions were denied, which has prompted the demolition company to appeal the jury verdict with the Illinois Appellate Court. At this time that appeal is still pending and Mr. Petrouski has yet to receive any of the awarded damages in his Chicago personal injury case.
Kreisman Law Offices has been handling Chicago construction site injuries for more than 35 years in and around Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Chicago Heights, Willowbrook, Orland Park and Prospect Heights, IL.
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