Premises Liability and Public Parks
Florida’s soft white sand, known as sugar sand, is the stuff of legend. It is why the west coast of Florida gets as many visitors as the east coast, despite not having a city that matches the world-famous glamour of Miami. Most incidents involving Florida’s sugar sand are almost idyllically peaceful; retirees take walks on the beach, and dogs fetch frisbees in the surf. Florida’s sugar sand was the cause of a catastrophe in early 2026. George Watts and Derrick Hubbard spent their winter break at Sportsman Park in Citrus County, even while most of their peers were glued to their screens. They began digging a tunnel in a mound of sugar sand, returning each day to continue working on their progress. They got so far with the project that, by two weeks in, they could both fit their entire bodies inside the tunnel together. One Saturday morning, when they were inside the tunnel, the sand collapsed, killing both boys. They were both 14 years old. If an accident like this happened on the grounds of a place of business, it would be a clear-cut case of premises liability, but what about accidents at public parks? If you got injured in a preventable accident at a public park, contact a Fort Lauderdale premises liability lawyer.
Are Park Visitors Business Invitees?
The doctrine of premises liability holds that, when a visitor gets injured in a preventable accident on someone else’s property, due to dangerous conditions on the property, the injured person has the right to file a personal injury lawsuit against the property owner or the owner of the business that operated on the property and seek compensation for his or her accident-related financial losses, including medical expenses and lost income. Personal injury law requires plaintiffs to prove that the defendant, in this case the property owner, had a duty of care to avoid exposing the plaintiff to a risk of injury.
When the plaintiff is a business invitee, that is, a paying customer at the defendant’s place of business, it goes without saying that the defendant has a duty of care. If the plaintiff is a licensee, visiting the business for his or her own benefit, as a vendor or subcontractor, the defendant has less of a duty of care, although the injured person still has the right to sue. Guests at private residences can also file premises liability lawsuits against social hosts who fail to prevent dangerous conditions. Property owners do not owe trespassers a duty of care, except to avoid intentionally injuring the trespassers.
People have filed premises liability lawsuits against city and county governments because of dangerous conditions on public property. Things are more complicated when the injured visitor did not pay to use the premises, whether it is public or private property, because of recreational land use statutes.
Set Up a Consultation Today
A personal injury lawyer can help you get justice after a preventable accident at a public park. Contact Boone & Davis in Fort Lauderdale, Florida or call 954-566-9919 to explore your potential recovery options today.
Source:
msn.com/en-us/news/crime/florida-teen-best-friends-killed-during-freak-sugar-sand-accident/ar-AA1UcJlR?ocid=msedgntp&pc=ACTS&cvid=6967b73e507547948403facf669118bb&ei=12
