Intervening Criminal Act

30 Florida cases classified under this topic · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Vining v. AVIS Rent-A-Car Sys., Inc.
  354 So. 2d 54· Fla.· 1977-11-10 ·cited 161×
  The Florida Supreme Court reversed the dismissal of a complaint against Avis for injuries caused when a stolen rental car was negligently operated by a thief. The court held that whether a car owner's negligent failure to secure a vehicle constitutes the proximate cause of injuri
• Nicholas v. Miami Burglar Alarm Co., Inc.
  339 So. 2d 175· Fla.· 1976-10-07 ·cited 105×
  The Florida Supreme Court held that a burglar alarm company may be held liable for negligent failure to report a trouble signal to police or the warehouse owner when the burglary was sufficiently foreseeable, but reversed the District Court's holding that punitive damages require
• Polly Suzanne Paterson v. Deeb
  472 So. 2d 1210· Fla. 1st DCA· 1985-06-12 ·cited 98×
  A tenant sued her landlord for negligence after being sexually assaulted by an intruder in her apartment, alleging the landlord breached statutory duties to provide locks and maintain safe common areas. The court reversed the trial court's dismissal, holding that a tenant can est
• Relyea v. State
  385 So. 2d 1378· Fla. 4th DCA· 1980-07-23 ·cited 95×
  This case involves a wrongful death action arising from the murder of two Florida Atlantic University students in 1970. The plaintiffs appealed judgments entered in favor of the State and university defendants after a mistrial, arguing the university had a duty to provide adequat
• Angell v. F. Avanzini Lumber Co.
  363 So. 2d 571· Fla. 2d DCA· 1978-09-22 ·cited 33×
  An administratrix of a man killed by a third party appeals the dismissal of a negligence complaint against a gun dealer who sold a firearm to a visibly erratic woman. The court reverses on the common law negligence count, holding that the criminal act of the third-party shooter d
• Davis v. State
  460 So. 2d 452· Fla. 1st DCA· 1984-12-03 ·cited 32×
  Inmate classification and placement within a prison system constitute a discretionary planning-level function of the Department of Corrections and are therefore immune from tort liability under sovereign immunity. The number and placement of supervisory personnel also constitute
• Nicholas v. Miami Burglar Alarm Co., Inc.
  266 So. 2d 64· Fla. 3d DCA· 1972-08-22 ·cited 31×
  A burglar alarm company's customer sued for damages from a burglary, claiming breach of contract, breach of implied warranty, and negligent maintenance. The trial court dismissed all counts, but the appellate court reversed in part, holding that while the company cannot be liable
• Coker v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  642 So. 2d 774· Fla. 1st DCA· 1994-09-08 ·cited 20×
  Sandra Coker sued Wal-Mart for wrongful death after her husband was murdered with ammunition that Wal-Mart illegally sold to underage purchasers in violation of the federal Gun Control Act. The court reversed the trial court's dismissal, holding that the illegal sale of ammunitio
• Hardy v. Pier 99 Motor INN
  664 So. 2d 1095· Fla. 1st DCA· 1995-12-08 ·cited 18×
  Hardy sued Pier 99 Motor Inn for negligence after being stabbed by a third party in the hotel parking lot while a security guard was on duty. The court reversed summary judgment against Pier 99, finding that evidence of prior criminal activity documented through 911 calls created
• AETNA Cas. & Sur. Co. v. Pappagallo Rest., Inc.
  547 So. 2d 243· Fla. 3d DCA· 1989-07-18 ·cited 16×
  A directed verdict for the bailee was improper because even if the presumption of negligence vanished due to evidence of theft, the underlying facts still presented a jury question regarding the bailee's exercise of due care.
• Lopez v. Life Ins. Co. OF Am.
  406 So. 2d 1155· Fla. 4th DCA· 1981-11-04 ·cited 16×
  Jim Lopez sued his life insurance company for negligence and bad faith after his wife obtained multiple life insurance policies on his life without his knowledge, then attempted to murder him. The court reversed the trial court's dismissal, holding that an insurer owes a duty to
• Gulfstar, Inc. v. Advance Mortg. Corp.
  376 So. 2d 243· Fla. 3d DCA· 1979-09-18 ·cited 11×
  Gulfstar, Inc. and its vice-president appealed a judgment awarding damages to a finance company for alleged negligence in issuing duplicate boat title documents. The court reversed, finding no duty owed by Gulfstar to the lender, no breach, and that intervening criminal acts by t
• Cullen v. BMW OF N. Am., Inc.
  691 F.2d 1097· 2d Cir.· 1982-10-13 ·cited 9×
  The dissenting judge believes the injury suffered by the plaintiff was foreseeable and that the majority failed to give proper deference to the trial judge's finding of foreseeability.
• Commercial Carrier Corp. v. S. J. G. Corp.
  409 So. 2d 50· Fla. 2d DCA· 1981-12-23 ·cited 9×
  Commercial Carrier Corporation appealed a judgment on the pleadings dismissing its negligence claims against S.J.G. Corporation, a car rental agency whose lessee left a rented car unattended with keys in the ignition, resulting in the car being stolen and negligently collided wit
• Vining v. AVIS Rent-A-Car Sys., Inc.
  330 So. 2d 550· Fla. 3d DCA· 1976-04-20 ·cited 8×
  The Vinings sued Avis for damages after a stolen rental car, negligently left unattended with keys in the ignition, was used by a thief to collide with their vehicle. The court affirmed dismissal of the complaint, holding that an intervening criminal act (the theft) breaks the ch
• Harley Jordan v. Lawson Lamar
  510 So. 2d 648· Fla. 5th DCA· 1987-07-30 ·cited 4×
  A firearm owner is not liable for negligent entrustment unless the entrustment itself was negligent. Here, the court affirmed a judgment for the defendant Lincoln, holding that the jury instruction correctly required the plaintiff to prove that Lincoln's act of lending the revolv
• Donyell A. Marsh v. Barry
  824 F.2d 1139· D.C. Cir.· 1987-07-28 ·cited 4×
  The court held that summary judgment was improperly granted on the claim that prison overcrowding proximately caused a fire, as the fire might have been part of a foreseeable riot. However, summary judgment was affirmed regarding claims about officials' conduct during and after t
• Abdallah v. Caribbean Sec. Agency
  557 F.2d 61· 3d Cir.· 1977-06-10 ·cited 4×
  The court held that summary judgment was improperly granted because material questions of fact remained regarding both the plaintiff's negligence and breach of contract claims.
• Solomon Schwartz v. Am. Home Assurance Co.
  334 So. 2d 268· Fla. 3d DCA· 1976-05-11 ·cited 4×
  Solomon Schwartz appealed a summary judgment dismissing his negligence action against vehicle owner Vincent Grande and his insurer American Home Assurance Company, arising from a fatal automobile accident. The court held that an intervening criminal act of a third-party stranger
• Ramirez v. The Paradies Shops, LLC
  69 F.4th 1213· 11th Cir.· 2023-06-05 ·cited 2×
  The Eleventh Circuit held that a plaintiff sufficiently pleaded a negligence claim by alleging a special relationship with the defendant and a foreseeable risk of harm from a data breach, but failed to sufficiently plead a breach of implied contract claim.
• Citimortgage v. Porter
  261 So. 3d 739· Fla. 3d DCA· 2018-12-19 ·cited 2×
  CitiMortgage appeals summary judgment favoring Sun West regarding priority of mortgage liens on a residential property. CitiMortgage's first mortgage was recorded in 2005, but suspicious documents—including a satisfaction purportedly executed in 2009 but recorded in 2012 and a di
• Cain v. Vontz
  703 F.2d 1279· 11th Cir.· 1983-04-25 ·cited 2×
  The court held that the question of proximate cause, including the foreseeability of an intervening criminal act, is a question for the jury, not to be decided as a matter of law on summary judgment.
• Almeida v. Trushin
  368 So. 2d 346· Fla.· 1979-02-08 ·cited 2×
  The Florida Supreme Court reviewed whether a tavern could be held liable for injuries caused by a thief who stole a car left unattended with keys in the ignition at the lounge's entrance. The Court held that the tavern was not liable because there was no evidence the lounge's emp
• Cooke v. Nationwide Mut. Fire Ins. Co.
  14 So. 3d 1192· Fla. 1st DCA· 2009-06-22 ·cited 1×
  Barbara Cooke appealed the dismissal of her wrongful death suit against Nationwide, UPS, Ramirez, and Carrera Transport. The court reversed summary judgment, holding that the plaintiff's decedent's alleged negligence was not an unforeseeable intervening cause breaking the chain o
• DZE Corp. v. Vince Duron Vickers
  Fla. 1st DCA· 2020-06-08
  The appellate court reversed a jury verdict against DZE Corporation, finding that the intoxicated driving of Christopher Generoso was the sole proximate cause of the deaths, not DZE's product or failure to warn. The court held that Generoso's actions broke the chain of causation
• Doherty v. Allianz Life Ins. Co. of N. Am.
  M.D. Fla.· 2019-08-20
  The court held that the economic loss rule did not bar the plaintiff's claims and that genuine issues of material fact existed regarding negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, and proximate causation, thus denying the defendant's motion for summary judgment.
• Herndon v. Shands Teaching Hosp. & Clinics, Inc.
  23 So. 3d 802· Fla. 1st DCA· 2009-11-30
  A medical care provider that maintains control of hazardous prescription drugs owes a duty of care to the public to prevent their unauthorized removal, and allegations that a hospital negligently hired and supervised an employee who stole such drugs and used them to commit murder
• State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. Bill Ussery Motors, Inc.
  653 So. 2d 481· Fla. 3d DCA· 1995-04-12
  State Farm, as subrogee of vehicle owners, appealed summary judgment in favor of an auto repair shop (Bill Ussery) in a negligent bailment action arising from the theft of a Mercedes Benz during routine service. The court affirmed, holding that the shop did not breach its duty of
• Avemco Ins. Co. v. Rooto Corp.
  967 F.2d 1105· 6th Cir.· 1992-06-25
  The court held that the intervening criminal act of a former employee was a superseding cause that broke the chain of proximate causation, barring negligence claims against the employer. The court also held that the storage of chemicals did not constitute an ultrahazardous activi
• Frank v. Elsworth Ewing Ralston & Strietmann Biscuit Co.
  248 F.2d 541· 6th Cir.· 1957-10-23
  The court held that the district court correctly dismissed the complaint, as the defendants could not be held liable as a matter of law for injuries caused by a thief operating their stolen, unlocked car.