March 28, 2024
Annapolis, US 50 F

Jury Awards $300K in Bicycle Accident, Annapolis City Asks For New Trial

In June 2017, Matthew Hager was riding his bicycle in a bike lane on Chinquapin Round Road when the front tire became lodged in a gap between the storm sewer grate and the roadway. Now, nearly 5 years later, and just before the City of Annapolis implements an electric bike program, a jury found the City negligent in maintaining bicycle lanes and awarded Mr. Hager $300,000.

Mr. Hager suffered physical scarring under his eyes and permanent discoloration of his face where bits of roadway became embedded in his skin. Monetarily, he was out of work for a month. And emotionally, the toll continues. Photos of the injuries show several deep gashes above the eye, another below the eye, smaller facial lacerations, and minor cuts and scrapes on his upper body and shoulder area.

Hager notified the City of the accident and the damages, and the City denied his claim. He filed suit in November of 2019.

During the trial, it came to light that Annapolis City was aware of the grates and the gaps. Back in 2012, there was a nearly-identical accident on Duke of Gloucester Street and the victim in that instance was not badly injured and notified the City of the problem. This was an issue City-wide.

THE PROBLEM: There is a frame that is embedded in the surface of the road that effectively creates a large hole. There is a grate that sits in that frame; however it must be adjusted via hardware to eliminate any dangerous gaps.

The City ordered the hardware needed to make the adjustable grates snug with the frame and repaired the one on Duke of Gloucester. However, the others were not repaired in a timely fashion, and Mr. Hager was involved in the accident. In fact, the grate where Hager had his accident was not fixed until mid-2018, well after the City had been notified of the issue. Further, during the course of the trial, it was noted that Hager’s legal team found similar problems across the City in 2020–even after the lawsuit was filed.

Despite all of this information, the City of Annapolis Office of Law pressed on with a jury trial and declined to make a settlement offer in July 2021.

After a 4-day jury trial, a jury sided with Mr. Hagar, found the City negligent, and awarded the plaintiff $300,000.

We contacted the City of Annapolis Office of Law to comment on the verdict and see if the remaining grates around the City had been fixed to prevent any future similar incidents; City Attorney D. Michael Lyles would not comment.

According to electronic court records, the City disagrees with the verdict and has asked for a new trial.

The City has been named a defendant in 45 cases under the Buckley administration (to date), 37 in the Pantelides administration, and 42 in the Cohen administration.

Read the Amended complaint here.

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