Paul Marinaccio Sr. v. Town of Clarence

Paul Marinaccio Sr., age 65, sued the Town of Clarence, New York and Kieffer Enterprises, Inc. on negligence theories claiming that runoff from a Kieffer's development turned his property into a wetland occupied by frogs, of which he was terrified, making him a prisoner in his own home.



Plaintiff commenced this action asserting causes of action for, inter alia, trespass and private nuisance and seeking

damages for flooding on his property allegedly caused by the intentional flow of water onto his property. The water originated from a subdivision (hereafter, subdivision) developed by defendant Kieffer Enterprises, Inc. (KEI) on land adjacent to plaintiff's property located in defendant Town of Clarence (Town). Following a trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of plaintiff on liability.



The jury awarded plaintiff a total of $1,642,000 in compensatory damages, as well as punitive damages of $250,000 against KEI.

The lower court jury returned a verdict of $1.3 million against the town and $328,400 against Kieffer for compensatory damages, as well as $250,000 in punitive damages against Kieffer.