$7.5 Million Jury Verdict for the Injured Man Trapped Under a Pallet of Watermelons

In July 2015, Henry Walker, a retired Army sergeant, was at a Wal-Mart store in Phenix City, Ala., when his foot got caught in a wooden pallet and he fell, fracturing his foot and hip. He was 59 years old at the time of this accident. He sought damages against Wal-Mart for negligence.

The jury’s verdict of $2.5 million in compensatory damages included another $5 million in punitive damages. Walker, who lives in Phenix City, was represented by attorneys Charlie Gower, Shawn O’Hara and David Rayfield. According to the report of this case, the jury trial began on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017 and continued until Wednesday, Nov. 15, with a jury reaching its verdict the same day after two hours of deliberation.

According to the attorneys for Walker, Wal-Mart should have covered the pallet so that it would not entangle a shopper’s foot. Wal-Mart countered that argument by maintaining that the display was not dangerous and that the cause of Walker’s injuries was his own negligence. According to Wal-Mart, the same displays are still in use.

Wal-Mart reported that it would seek an appeal of this jury verdict.

Henry Walker v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., Russell County, Alabama (Nov. 15, 2017).

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling catastrophic injury lawsuits, wrongful death cases and truck crash cases, for individuals, families and the loved ones who have been injured, harmed or killed by the negligence of another for more than 40 years, in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Tinley Park, Riverside, Waukegan, Joliet, Aurora, Bensenville, Bolingbrook, St. Charles, Hinsdale, Chicago (Edgebrook, Rogers Park, South Shore, East Side), Naperville and New Lenox, Ill.