Judy Jones v. BREC Foundation, City of Baton Rouge / Parish of East Baton Rouge, Recreation and Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge, John Doe, and ABC Insurance Company

STATE OF LOUISIANA COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT JUDY JONES NO. 2023 CW 0196 VERSUS BREC FOUNDATION, CITY OF BATON ROUGE/ PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE, RECREATION AND PARK COMMISSION FOR THE JUNE 14, 2023 PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE, JOHN DOE, AND ABC INSURANCE COMPANY In Re: The Recreation and Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge, applying for supervisory writs, 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No. 583052. BEFORE: THERIOT, CHUTZ, AND HESTER, JJ. WRIT GRANTED. The district court' s January 25, 2023 order denying the motion for summary judgment filed by the defendant, The Recreation and Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge (" BREC"), is reversed. La. R. S. 9: 2800( 0) provides that no person shall have a cause of action based solely upon liability imposed under Civil Code Article 2317 against a public entity for damages caused by the condition of things within its care and custody unless the public entity had actual or construction notice .., and a reasonable opportunity to remedy the defect." Further, under La. R. S. 9: 2800, the Louisiana Supreme Court has held that "[ t] he plaintiff must establish ... actual or constructive notice of the defect" and a failure to " take corrective measures within a reasonable time." Lee v. State Through Dept. of Transp. and Development, 97- 0350 ( La. 10/ 21/ 97), 701 So. 2d 676, 578 . In this matter, the complained - of area of the park was covered by grass, and there was no evidence BREC had actual or constructive notice of an unreasonably dangerous condition. Thus, we find the plaintiff, Judy Jones (` Jones"), failed to produce factual support sufficient to establish the existence of a genuine issue of material fact as to actual or constructive notice of the alleged defect by BREC, which is an essential element of her claim. Therefore, the motion for summary judgment filed by BREC is granted, and the claims by Jones against BREC are dismissed. MRT WRC CHH COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT D TJ Y CLERK OF COURT FOR THE COURT