Rape victim sues apartment complex for inadequate security – Defendants say rapist couldn't have been deterred

$1.5 million settlement
A 22-year-old woman who was abducted and sexually assaulted when she was on her way to visit a friend will receive a $1.5 million settlement from the apartment complex where the abduction took place.
Although plaintiff Nicole Romano was abducted from Plaza Square Apartments in St. Louis, the sexual assault took place off the premises. The incident occurred at about 3:30 a.m. March 5, 2000.
Earlier, Romano had been at a Mardi Gras party, where she consumed beer and drugs, including marijuana and ecstasy, within the eight hours prior to the abduction.
Visiting the apartment complex for the first time, Romano was unable to find her friend’s name on the directory in the building’s vestibule. She was also unable to get into the lobby because the secured building’s lobby door was locked. When she exited the outer door of the vestibule, she was approached on the apartment’s sidewalk by an unknown assailant with a box cutter. She was forced to walk with the assailant to her car and drive to a location off the premises, where she was raped. The assailant was never found, and Romano declined to assist with further investigation.
Romano alleged Plaza Square Partners L.L.C., the complex owner, and CMS Inc., the complex manager, failed to provide adequate security on the premises. Specifically, she alleged the defendants failed to have a doorman in the lobby of the building behind the locked vestibule door and failed to properly repair and maintain a surveillance camera located in the lobby and facing the vestibule and sidewalk. Romano further claimed the defendants knew or should have known of several prior violent crimes on the premises, including some referenced in the defendants’ daily log books.
The defendants disputed the number of prior violent crimes on the premises and the similarity to the abduction of Romano. They alleged they provided up to two roaming “residential services officers” on the premises 24 hours a day, which was adequate for the protection of the tenants and their guests, and that the vestibule surveillance cameras were not designed to monitor activities outside the vestibule. The defendants further argued the assailant could not have been reasonably deterred from abducting Romano from the premises given the circumstances surrounding the crime. They disputed that any alleged negligence on their part caused or contributed to cause Romano’s damages and alleged Romano’s drug and alcohol use was negligent, which contributed to her abduction and subsequent assault.
The parties settled the case in mediation for $1.5 million.
Facts of the case
Type of Action: Premises liability, third-party assault
Type of Injuries: Sexual assault, including rape and sodomy, and posttraumatic stress disorder
Court/Case Number/Date: City of St. Louis/042-01987/Dec. 28, 2005
Caption: Nicole Romano v. Plaza Square Partners L.L.C. and CMS Inc.
Judge, Jury or ADR: ADR, mediation
Name of Mediator: Carl R. Gaertner
Verdict or Settlement: $1.5 million settlement
Special Damages: None submitted
Allocation of Fault: N/A
Last Demand: N/A
Last Offer: N/A
Attorneys for Plaintiff: James D. O’Leary, Onder Shelton, O’Leary & Peterson L.L.C., St. Louis
Insurance Carrier: Confidential
Plaintiff’s Experts: Dr. John Lombardi (criminologist and security consultant) Daphne, Ala., and Dr. Sharon Lightfoot (psychologist) St. Louis
Defendants’ Experts: Dr. Bruce Jacobs (criminologist) Dallas, and Terry Korpal (security consultant) St. Louis