Hurt Because a Property Owner Failed to Keep You Safe?

A negligent security claim asks whether a property owner or manager failed to take reasonable steps against a crime that was foreseeable. In Decatur, these cases often involve an assault, robbery, or shooting on property the victim was lawfully using. Georgia law sets specific rules, and each case turns on its facts. T. Madden & Associates, P.C. has practiced since 1999 and has an office in Decatur. Here is how these claims work, in plain language.

What Is Negligent Security in Georgia?

Negligent security is a claim that an owner or manager failed to protect people from another person’s crime. The injured person is usually a lawful visitor, customer, tenant, or employee, not the attacker. Georgia’s rules are in the Georgia negligent security law, O.C.G.A. §§ 51-3-50 through 51-3-57. Under that law, “wrongful conduct” includes any violation of a Georgia state law or local ordinance punishable as a felony or misdemeanor, whether or not it results in an arrest or conviction, and any other conduct that amounts to an intentional, or willful and wanton, tort. A claim against the attacker is a separate matter. The property claim asks a different question: did the owner take reasonable steps against a crime that could be foreseen?

Examples of Negligent Security in Decatur

Negligent security cases often involve common areas. One example is an assault in an apartment complex parking lot, stairwell, or laundry room after residents complained about that same spot. Another is a shooting at a shopping center where lights, cameras, or patrols were missing or not working. Attacks in parking decks and surface lots near hotels and office buildings can raise the same questions. A broken gate or lock at an entryway can matter too. In a rental property, the key question is whether the landlord knew of earlier break-ins or assaults and did nothing. Each example turns on what the owner knew and what it did next. Crime data can help show what was foreseeable. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation publishes crime statistics by jurisdiction.

What Must a Property Owner Do to Keep Premises Safe?

An owner must use ordinary care, but it does not have to act like the police. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-3-55, an owner is not required to use extraordinary care or take on law enforcement duties. A crime can be foreseeable if the owner had a particularized warning, meaning specific information it actually knew and believed. Prior occurrences can also make a wrongful act foreseeable when they are substantially similar to the later incident, judged by their nature, dangerousness, proximity, location, time, and circumstances, and the owner knew about them (O.C.G.A. § 51-3-50(5)). The plaintiff must also show a known physical problem, such as broken lighting, created a risk well above the general risk nearby. The owner must have failed to use ordinary care to fix it. The judge or jury weighs the security measures in place, whether more measures were practical, and whether they would have prevented the injury.

How a Decatur Negligent Security Case Is Investigated

Evidence gathered early often decides much of a case. Video, incident reports, and police and 911 records show what happened and when. Photos of lighting, locks, and gates show conditions at the time. Witness names, tenant complaints to management, and maintenance logs can show what the owner knew and fixed. Police reports matter for a specific reason. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-3-54, an owner cannot be held liable based on a particularized warning if it made a reasonable effort to tell police, and calling 9-1-1 counts as that effort. Identifying the right defendant matters too. An owner, a management company, or a security contractor may each have a role. A landlord that has fully parted with possession and the right of possession is not responsible to third persons for damages from a tenant’s negligence or illegal use of the premises under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-14, but it stays responsible for defective construction and failure to keep the premises in repair.

Time Limits, Damages, and Fault in Georgia Claims

Georgia sets filing deadlines for these claims, and waiting can make evidence harder to gather. Fault can be shared. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-3-56, the judge or jury divides fault among the owner, the attacker, and others. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33, damages are reduced by the injured person’s share of fault, and a plaintiff who is 50 percent or more responsible cannot recover damages. Damages are given as compensation for injury; generally, that compensation applies where the injury can be estimated in money, and if an injury is small or the mitigating circumstances are strong, only nominal damages are given, as stated in O.C.G.A. § 51-12-4. In a wrongful death case, O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2 lets a surviving spouse, or children if there is no spouse, recover the full value of the decedent’s life as shown by the evidence. The spouse receives no less than one-third of that recovery. The firm works on a no-fee-unless-we-win basis, but you may still be responsible for court costs and case expenses.

Talk With T. Madden & Associates About a Decatur Incident

T. Madden & Associates, P.C. offers a free, confidential first consultation with no obligation to continue. Terance Madden leads the firm, and Shenia Madden is also among its lawyers. The firm has practiced since 1999 and has offices in Jonesboro, Atlanta, Decatur, Macon, and Augusta. You can request a free case evaluation, schedule a free consultation, or call the firm, which is available 24/7. For Spanish-speaking readers: consulta inicial gratuita, confidencial y sin compromiso.

Frequently Asked Questions

This page is general information, not legal advice. Responsible lawyer: Terance Madden, T. Madden & Associates, P.C. Contact details are on the firm’s contact page.