The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About13 LATE CLAIM #98-20 07-20-98 LAW OFFICES OF WOODRUFF, SPRADLIN & SMAR A PROFE~IONAL CORPORATION AGENDA MEMORANDUM NO. 13 7-20-98 TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council City of Tustin FROM' City Attorney DATE: RE: July 13, 1998 Application to File Late Claim by Gloria Maria Chornomud; Claim No. 98-20 RECOMMENDATION: After investigation and review by this office and by the City's Claims Administrators it is recommended that the City Council deny the application for leave to present a late claim against the City of Tustin and direct the City Clerk to provide notice thereof to the claimant and to her attorneys. DISCUSSION' The claimant alleges that she fell and injured her knee cartilage on a City sideWalk that had been raised due to adjacent City trees. This incident occurred on July 30, 1997. Claimant did not submit her claim for personal injuries until June 1, 1998, which is more than six (6) months after the date of the incident. The City notified her in writing that the claim was late and of the opportunity to file an application to present a late claim. The enclosed application does not contain any facts that would require the City to grant the application to present a late claim. Claimant alleges that she should be excused from filing a claim because she did not receive a letter from the City of Tustin advising her that her claim was late until after June 10, 1998. Although claimant appears to be represented by Council, the justification presented does not amount to a "mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect" that occurred sometime between July 30, 1997 and the time she filed her claim which was June 1, 1998. The City's letter was not late or defective in any manner; rather, it alerted her to the opportunity to make her case for presenting her claim · late. We recommend denial of the application. ~2 LOIS E. JEFFRI~//// '5 Enclosure cc: William A. Huston, City Manager · ~1102-9820 65466_1 Office of the City Clerk 3une 1, 1998 Carl Warren & Co. P. O. Box 25180 Santa Aha, CA 92799-5180 Re' Transmittal of Document(s) Claimant: /' Gloria Chornomud Claim No.: 98-20 Filed With City: 6-1-98 X City of Tustin 300 Centennial Way Tustin, CA 92680 ~ (714) 573-3026 Receipt of Claim/Summons and Complaint by the City Clerk's Office on: Date: 6-1-98 Time' 1:10 p.m. By: Personal Service upon the undersigned Regular Mail Certified/Registered Nail Interdepartment Delivery The enclosed Claim (or Application to File Late Claim) was presented to this office as indicated above and has been referred to the appropriate City department for its investigation and also to the offices of Woodruff, Spradlin and Smart, Attn: Lois E. 3effrey, City Attorney. By this letter, you are authorized to commence the necessary investigation of this claim on behalf of the City. We request that you give such notices as may be appropriate to the City's insurance carrier(s) and further request that you submit your preliminary and all subsequent reports to the City, with a copy to the City Attorney and to the insurance carrier(s) if they so request. Upon receipt of advice from the City Attorney, we will plan to present this matter to the City Council and/or take such other steps as are directed by the City Attorney. Other: A copy of this letter and enclosures were .sent on 6-1-98 to the City Attorney and Department Head, and the original was forwarded to the Finance Department. i ,~,'.~~cerely, Beverley Wl~it,~ DepuW City £4erk Enoosure~ City of Tustin C~ AGAINST THE CITY OF ~ 'AN (For Dama~_s to Persons or Persona_ Property) The law provides generally that'a claim must be filed with the City Clerk of the City of'Tustin within'6 months after the incident or event occurred. Be sure your claim is against the City of Tustin, not another public entity. Where space is insufficient, please use additional paper and identify information by paragraph number. Completed claims must be mailed or delivered to the City Clerk, City of Tustin, 300 Centennial Way, Tustin, California 92680 WSIEN COMPLETING THIS FORM, PLEASE TYPE OR USE BLACK INK TO THE HONORABLE ¥=%YOR AND CITY .COUNCIL, City of Tustin, California- The undersigned respectfully submits the following claim and' information relative to damage to person and/or property: · .. 1, a. NAI~E OF CLAIMANT: b. ~D~SS OF C~I~T:. c. CITY/ZIP CODE:. '~'~-~ d. ~PHONE NO: .( ~, e. DATE OF BIRTH: f. SOCIAL SEC~ITY NO' g. DRI~ LICENSE NO:- ~ 2. Name, telephone and post office address to which claimant desires notices to be sent (if other than above): 3. This claim is submitted against: a. ~'. The City of Tustin only. b. The following employee(s) of the City of Tustin only' C. The City of Tustin and the following employee(s) of the City of Tustin only: 4. Occurrence or event~from which the claim arises: a. DATE: --//? 9 /4:7 Ti-~E' ~: o~ ~ c. PLACE (Exact and specific location)' ~ iD~/~.~ t~C~T~ 'a? HOW and under what circumstances did damage or inju~ occur?' Specify ~te particular occurrence, event, act or omission you claim caused ~e inju~ or damage (Use additional paper if. necessary)- e. ~T particular %ction by the City, or it~ e~ployees, caused the alleged damage injury? 5. Give a description of the injury, property damage or loss so far known at' the time of 'this claim. If there were no injuries, state "no injuries". 6~ Give the name(s) of the City. employee(s) causing the damage or injury- 7. Name and address of any other person injured: 8. Name and address of the owner or any damaged property: '~,~- 9. Damages claimed: a. Amount claimed as of the date: ;~$D~C~ ~~g-3 + b. Estimated amount of future costs: c. Total amount claimed- i~~ d. Attach basis for computation of amounts claimed (include copies of . all bills, invoices, estimates, etc. 10. Names and addresses of all witnesses, hospitals, doctors, etc. W.~RNZNG: IT IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE TO FILE A .FALSE CLAIM!! (Penal Code Section 72; Insurance Code 'Section 556.0) I have read the matters and statements made in the above claim and I ~no~ the same to be true of my own knowledge, except as to those m~tters stated to be upon information or belief and ~s to such matters I believe the same to be t-~ue. I certify under penalty or perjury that the foregoing is TRUE AND CORRECT. Executed this., day of ,19 ~, at Tustin, California.- DATE ~ = C,I~A_T~.3LNT'S SIGNATURE B!'CLFORM Revised 4/29/91 1 2 3 5 6 ? 8 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 19 2O 21 22 23 2~ 2~ 26 27 28 IN THE MATTER THE APPLICATION FOR PERMISSION TO FILE LATE CLAIM OF GLORIA MARIA CHORNOMOUD GLORIA MARIA CHORNOMOUD V CITY OF TUSTIN Gloria Maria Chornomoud, claimant hereby applies to the City Council of the City of Tustin for leave to present a claim against the City of Tustin pursuant to Gov. Code § 911.4. II Claimant's cause of action as set is a period within one year from the filing of this application forth in her proposed claim attached hereto, accrued on July 30, 1997 III Claimant's reason for delay in presenting her claim is as follows; a Claimant did not receive the City of Tustin's letter dated and mailed until after June 10, 1998 advising of her right to file a late claim under Gov Code b. {}911 et seq. The city was not prejudiced by the failure to present the claim within the required 100 days following the accrual of the cause of action, IV At the time of presentation of this claim, claimant claims damages in the amount of $17,000.00 on the basis of medical, special and foreseeable future expenses. · V All notices or other communications should be sent to' Gioria Maria Chornomoud Dated July ~ 1998 Stanley B. Christensen Attorney at Law 1519 East Chapman Ave, Ste 179 Fullerton, CA 9283 l ,. .. %,' ×-."~ ?' Claimant // . THE YzATTER OF THE CLAIM OF GLORIA MARIA CHORNOMOUD, CLAIMANT V THE CITY OF TUSTIN Gloria Maria Chornomoud, claimant, hereby presents this claim to the City of Tustin pursuant to Gov. Code §910: 1. The name and post office address of claimant is as follows: Gloria Maria Chornomoud · The post office address to which claimant also desires notice of this claim to be sent is as follows: Stanley B. Christensen Attorney at Law 1519 East Chapman Avenue . Ste 179 Fullerton, CA. 92831 3, On July 30, 1997 on or about 7:00 P.M. the claimant fell and injured her knee cartilage upon entering the sidewalk, located in front of claimant's residence and raised approximately 3" by adjacent tree roots: that both the sidewalk and trees adjacent to sidewalk are cared for and maintained by the City of the City of Tustin. 4' Claimant violated the duty as the owner of the public sidewalk, trees and parkway to refrain from creating a condition likely to cause harm to persons lawfully using the sidewalk, and to refrain from obstructing and its duty to warn of any dangerous condition so that the public might while in the exercise of due care and caution for its own safety, pass safely over and upon the public sidewalk, in that: a. Defendant unlawfully obstructed the public sidewalk by allowing the adjacent tree roots to cause sidewalk to bulge and buckle thereby endangering and being a source of peril to all persons passing and using the sidewalk. b. Defendant failed and neglected to warn or advise of the dangerous condition although the city knew or should have known or advised that such public sidewalk is used regularly by many pedestrians. 5 As a direct and proximate result of city's negligence as · aforesaid plaintiff fell to the ground and suffered injuries to her knee cartilage and has and continues to suffer pain the physical-disability and loss of present and future earnings and will incur future medical expenses in an ~ount presently,unknown Dated /~~ - ~- 7~ · ~tl~e. 2 0f 2