A Sonoma County woman is suing Costco for $14.1 million, citing permanent injuries after a display case fell on her in a store. Sadie Novotny says she suffered a traumatic brain injury, among others, and is hoping to cover current and future medical bills and loss of income.
She’s accused Costco of negligence, claiming the display’s supports were inadequate.
Sonoma County woman sues Costco
According to Novotny, who filed the suit on April 29, the display liquor cabinet that fell on her at the Santa Rosa Costco sat precariously on a “worn” and “inadequate wooden pallet,” supported only by “thin legs.”
The cabinet tipped over “without warning” while she was in front of it. She had to catch the large piece of furniture and heft it back into place, resulting in “multiple, permanent and catastrophic injuries,” the suit alleges.
“I caught the cabinet and pushed it back,” she wrote in the Costco incident report. “My right shoulder, forearm, hand, fingers and lower back hurt after the accident,”
The plaintiff is specifically suing the warehouse store company for negligence, premises liability and products liability. She says Costco failed to warn customers about the display, train employees about it, or “discover unsafe conditions.”
The $14.1 she’s seeking consists of $5 million for “pain, suffering, and inconvenience,” $100,000 for current medical expenses and lost income, $4 million for the same in the future, and $5 million for emotional distress.
“All you can eat hot dogs for life”
On X, users who read about the incident made the usual jokes about lawsuits like these, with some suggesting that Novotny faked or exaggerated her injuries for a hefty payout.
User @marcinko210 posted an image of a squirrel lying flat on its back under a broom handle, joking, “Me at the store in 20 minutes.”
“Costco should settle,” wrote @ChefNazty alongside a Seinfeld gif. “All you can eat hot dogs for life.”
These kinds of jokes often spread over stories like Novotny’s as part of a pervasive myth that Americans push frivolous lawsuits to try and cash in on the small mistakes of innocent corporations.
One of the most famous suits that helped create the myth was Liebeck v. McDonald’s Restaurants, more commonly known as the McDonald’s hot coffee lawsuit. Many dismissed the idea that someone who spilled a little coffee on themselves should get $2.8 million. However, the public was largely unaware of the extent of Stella Liebeck’s injuries.
The 79-year-old woman suffered third-degree burns requiring skin grafts and eight days in the hospital. Full recovery took an additional two years.
What many people also don’t know is that Liebeck initially only asked McDonald’s for $20,000 to cover her initial medical bills. They refused, so she had no choice but to take them to court. The jury awarded her the extra money in punitive damages, but the judge rolled that back to $640,000.
If Novotny has indeed suffered a traumatic brain injury, this could lead to a lifetime of issues, including early dementia and death.
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