The state’s Court of Appeals last month reinstated a woman’s lawsuit against Jefferson County for allegedly failing to prevent her slip-and-fall inside a county building.

The decision in Krista Dozier’s case comes as the Colorado Supreme Court is preparing to hear another appeal involving Jeffco, where a woman injured herself yards away from Dozier’s fall. In both instances, the plaintiffs claim the county neglected to properly maintain its buildings, resulting in a dangerous condition.

Dozier was inside the courts and administration building in March 2019 when she slipped on a puddle of water and injured herself. Although employees in the building were aware of the spill and had requested a cleanup, Dozier’s fall happened within minutes of the request. 

“A couple of brown napkins were placed upon the puddle by employees of the District Attorneys’ office. No other markings notified visitors of the dangerous condition,” her lawsuit alleged.

To proceed, Dozier needed to overcome the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, which broadly shields government entities from lawsuits with some exceptions. For instance, if a person is injured due to a “dangerous condition of any public building,” immunity does not apply.

District Court Judge Tamara S. Russell dismissed Dozier’s lawsuit, agreeing with the county that she had no jurisdiction over the case. Because Dozier had not shown Jeffco had a “reasonable” opportunity to clean up the spill, it was not negligent in its maintenance and there was no “dangerous condition.” Consequently, the county kept its immunity.

But a three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals concluded Russell had required Dozier to prove more than she had to. Dozier did not yet need to show the county had enough time to respond to the water spill and acted negligently with its delay.

The “reasonableness of the county’s response was not relevant to, let alone determinative of, the issue of whether the district court had the power to hear Dozier’s claims,” wrote Chief Judge Gilbert M. Román on May 25. 

Case: Dozier v. Jefferson County

Decided: May 25, 2023

Jurisdiction: Jefferson County

Ruling: 3-0

Judges: Gilbert M. Román (author)

Rebecca R. Freyre

Ted C. Tow III

Background: Jeffco parking garage a ‘public building’, says appeals court in green-lighting lawsuit

Because Dozier alleged the county had an obligation to warn visitors or otherwise clean up dangerous spills, and did not do so in her case, governmental immunity did not apply.

This fall, the state Supreme Court will likely hear oral arguments in another lawsuit against Jefferson County. Beverly Stickle tripped and fell on the upper deck of a parking garage adjacent to the courts and administration building. The painting of the upper deck created an “illusion” of an even surface, which qualified as a dangerous condition resulting from maintenance, the Court of Appeals concluded.

The Supreme Court will evaluate if the parking garage is a “public building” under the governmental immunity law, and whether resurfacing the top lot to create the illusion opened Jeffco up to liability. 

The case is Dozier v. Jefferson County.