CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Tim Scott delivering his opening statement
San Diego, CA - A California state court jury heard opening statements Thursday in a lawsuit blaming San Diego County’s Metropolitan Transit System for a warehouse platform collapse that left dozens injured, and the full trial is being webcast by Courtroom View Network.
The case stems from an accident in a warehouse owned by MTS and leased out to a company called Vault PK, which used the space as a parkour gym hosting children’s parties. In 2017 a mezzanine platform Vault PK built collapsed, when more than 30 parents and children rushed upstairs for pizza, and the plaintiffs accuse MTS of failing to have the warehouse properly permitted or inspected.
In 2022 another San Diego County jury found Vault PK and tenant San Diego Sports Entertainment Center negligent, and during that trial the court entered judgment that MTS wasn’t liable, however an appeals court reversed that decision and ordered a new trial. Vault PK and SDSEC settled with the nine plaintiffs in the current trial, and MTS is the sole defendant.
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During his opening statement on behalf of the plaintiffs, attorney Tim Scott of McKenzie Scott didn’t specify the exact amount of damages he would ask for but said it would be “some number of millions.”
MTS originally built the warehouse in question in the 1960’s to house railroad equipment, but it later decided to lease space out to tenants to generate revenue.
Scott told jurors that a property owner, not a tenant, is responsible for ensuring tasks like permitting and inspection get completed before a space is opened for public use. He argued an MTS property manager testified in a deposition they don’t have a system to inspect their leased properties.
“There was no reason why,” Scott quoted from the manager's testimony. ”We just didn’t have one.”
Scott explained MTS already stipulated the non-permitted mezzanine platform constituted a dangerous condition, but they also argue they were never aware of it.
However Scott told jurors a Vault PK employee who witnessed the collapse would testify that MTS representatives made frequent visits to the site and had to be aware of the construction, and that they were captured on video surveillance on the premises.
“MTS and their employees were in and out of that building basically all the time,” he stressed.
Representing MTS, defense attorney Kimberly Oberrecht of Horton Oberrecht & Kirkpatrick placed the blame squarely on Vault PK for what she characterized as an “unfortunate and shocking accident.”
“The only reason we are here is because of Vault PK,” she said. “Because they built an unpermitted platform structure that they admit they did not attach to the wall correctly.”
Oberrecht explained that MTS originally leased the warehouse space to SDSEC, and they then subleased space to Vault PK for their parkour business in supposed violation of that agreement, thus making SDSEC also liable for the accident.
She insisted Vault PK built the platform without MTS’ knowledge, and she maintained any MTS employees on the premises before the accident did not know what the platform would be used for having never been consulted in its construction.
The full trial will take roughly a week to complete, and CVN’s live and on-demand coverage will continue for the duration of the proceedings. Sign up for a video library subscription now for immediate access.
The case is captioned Veronica Doyle, et al. v. San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, case number 37-2018-00016374-CU-PO-CTL in San Diego County Superior Court.
E-mail David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com