201705.31

Shooting at Equinox Gym in Coral Gables Highlights the Importance of Ensuring Proper Safety and Security for a Business’s Patrons and Employees

A workplace shooting recently occurred at an Equinox gym facility in Coral Gables. A trainer who had been terminated from Equinox earlier that day entered the club, pulled out a gun and opened fire, killing an Equinox employee and critically injuring another before turning the gun on himself according to a news report from the Miami Herald. This is a tragic circumstance that can leave behind children, spouses, and victims whose ability to support themselves is severely impaired or non-existent as a result of the gunman’s actions. However, Florida law provides for compensation for victims of such horrific acts of workplace violence and their families, including compensation for their pain and suffering and for any medical expenses or income losses connected to injuries suffered in a shooting such as this.

What Claims Would the Victims of This Tragedy Have under Florida Law and Against Whom?

This situation presents a complicated legal scenario because it involves numerous different types of legal claims against different legal entities. To begin with, any person injured by the gunman would have a claim against the gunman’s estate. However, the gunman’s estate likely has few if any assets to cover any of the victim’s claims.

In this scenario, Equinox also could potentially be liable under a premises liability/negligent security claim. Equinox owes both its patrons and employees a duty to take reasonable precautions to ensure their safety while either working or working out. Therefore, if Equinox had any information to suggest the gunman presented a danger to his ex-colleagues or the gym’s patrons after his termination yet failed to increase security or take other precautions, then Equinox could be liable for failing to do so. If Equinox were found by a jury not to have taken reasonable steps to prevent against the danger of the gunman returning to his former workplace and doing something that put the lives of his former co-workers and the gym’s patrons at risk, then Equinox would be responsible for the damages suffered by the victims and their families.

Damages Available in Connection with the Victims’ Claims

If an injured victim of the Coral Gables Equinox shooting brought a premises liability or negligent security claim against the gym, then he or she would be entitled to recover damages commensurate with the losses he or she suffered due to his or her injuries. For instance, the medical bills (for both past as well as future treatment) associated with the injuries suffered are compensable at trial, as would be the income losses the individual suffered due to the injuries (such as any work they were forced to miss). Finally, to the extent a shooting victim has a spouse or other dependents/children, they would each have a claim for any loss of lost support and services they have suffered as a result of the injuries suffered by the shooting victim. For instance, a wife whose husband was injured in the shooting who has to hire a handyman and lawn service due to her husband’s injuries would be entitled to recover those expenses at a trial.

Meanwhile, if the person or person(s) bringing a claim is doing so based upon the death of an individual, that person would be bringing a claim under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. Under Florida law, a statutory survivor, such as a spouse or child, could bring claims for loss of support and services as a result of the decedent’s death, loss of consortium, as well as for pain and suffering associated with the decedent’s death.

Contact the Experienced Personal Injury Lawyers of Schwed, Adams, Sobel & McGinley if You or a Loved One is Injured or Killed in a Workplace Shooting or Other Scenario

If you or a loved one have been injured or killed in a tragic incident like the shooting at the Coral Gables Equinox facility, contact the experienced personal injury attorneys of Schwed, Adams, Sobel & McGinley today. Our personal injury attorneys have over 150 years of combined legal experience representing those who have been victims of incidents like the Coral Gables Equinox shooting or other scenarios involving personal injuries or wrongful death. If you or a loved one has been injured or killed, regardless of the scenario in which such a tragedy occurred, contact the experienced personal injuries at Schwed Adams for a free consultation regarding your legal rights today at contact@schwedlawfirm.com or 877.694.6079.