Trial Magazine

Doe, 69, lived in a condominium complex. He was beaten severely by his next-door neighbor, a Level 3 registered sex offender, who rented his unit from his brother, the condominium owner. Doe remained comatose for nine months before succumbing to his injuries. He is survived by his adult daughter.

Suit against the condominium owner and the condominium board alleged that the owner negligently rented the unit to his brother, who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and had a violent criminal history, and that the board failed to protect residents from a known convicted sex offender. The plaintiff also alleged that the board failed to send yearly warnings to residents despite receiving annual sex offender registry notices from the local police department.

The board argued that it had no duty to warn and had also relied on its attorney’s advice not to warn about the perpetrator’s presence in the community.

The parties settled before trial for $3 million.

Citation: Doe v. Roe Condominium Owner, Confidential Dkt. No. (Confidential Jxn. Aug. 17, 2019).

Claimant counsel: AAJ members Kenneth Kolpan and Mark F. Itzkowitz, both of Boston.