By Matt Miller*
Concluding that her own inadvisable juggling act led to her injury, a state appeals court panel has refused to revive a lawsuit by a student who spilled scalding coffee on herself at a Sheetz convenience store.
In suing Sheetz, Katrina Soohey claimed the chain was negligent because it didn’t supply baskets to enable patrons to safely carry multiple items at one of its stores in Latrobe. Soohey appealed to the Superior Court after a Westmoreland County judge dismissed her lawsuit.
The circumstances of the May 1, 2013 mishap are outlined in the state court opinion by Senior Judge William H. Platt issued this week.
“While carrying her wallet in her hands, (Soohey) brewed a cup of cappuccino at the self-serve machine, placed a lid on the hot cappuccino, and then carried it to the cooler where she obtained a bottle of Gatorade and a glass bottle of Starbucks coffee,” Platt wrote.
“She carried all these items including her wallet, in her hands and arms,” he added. “While reaching for a pack of gum, the glass bottle of Starbucks coffee and the hot cappuccino began to slide from her grasp. The bottle of coffee crashed to the floor and the cappuccino spilled on her left arm and breast, causing scalding burning to her left breast.”
Soohey, who was on her way to class at St. Vincent College when the mishap occurred, also claimed in her suit that Sheetz was negligent for not warning customers about the dangers of carrying hot beverages through the store.
In upholding the suit’s dismissal, Platt seconded the finding of county Judge Anthony G. Marsili that ‘in the exercise of due care, (Soohey) could have avoided the harm that was caused by by her carrying too many items at once.”
