Wellington v. Parsons

On November 6, 1997, Appellee-Plaintiff, Daniel Parsons (Parsons), a mail carrier for the United States Postal Service, delivered mail to a condominium development known as Wellington Commons. Wellington Commons is owned by Wellington Green Homeowners' Association. Under a management agreement with Wellington Green Homeowners' Association, Kirkpatrick Management Company is the property manager for Wellington Commons.

Wellington Commons uses multi-box mailboxes for its mail receptacles. Parsons described a multi-box mailbox as follows:

Well, it would be for a multi-family unit, more than - it would be an apartment building or condo where there's more than one (1) family residing in that building. And rather than having each individual mailbox by each door, there'd be one (1) central location, or a cluster where you deliver all the mail . . . .

(Tr. p. 28). Parsons used an "arrow key," which is a "master key that opens each individual - there's opening[s] for the five (5) units. We put the arrow key in the whole five-unit thing [and it] opens up where you can put mail in for five (5) residents." (Tr. p. 32). Parsons kept the arrow key on a chain, which was attached to "a special thing that goes around [his] belt." (Tr. p. 35).

Parsons attempted to open a multi-box mailbox with his arrow key. However, it would not open. He turned the key back and forth and jiggled it. Parsons stated that there are "pins that connect, and sometimes it can be hung up. And if you can jiggle it, and those pins come free, and the box will open." (Tr. p. 34). As he jiggled the key, the multi-box mailbox came off the wall. It did not hit him, but it threw him off balance. Parsons testified:
I just - I twisted funny. It caused me to turn in a certain way, because the majority of the weight was in [sic] my left and I was trying to set it [the mail] up there when the box went the other way. So I was just caught in an awkward position, and when the box fell, I assume it was just a - I twisted funny because of that. And I injured my self [sic].

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Based on the foregoing, we conclude that the trial court erred in denying the Appellants’ motion for judgment on the evidence.

Reversed in favor of the Defendants.

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C.L.