Family of NC man who drowned while drunk can’t sue businesses, property owners, court says
Nearly two years after a Mecklenburg County man drowned in University City, a state appellate court confirmed a local judge’s ruling: Because the 32-year-old had drunkenly chosen to jump into a shopping center’s lake, his family can’t sue the property owners.
In an opinion published Tuesday, three judges with the Court of Appeals of North Carolina sided with a trio of businesses associated with the Charlotte lake.
On Sept. 14, 2020, Gregory Dwayne Lovett met up with friends at Boardwalk Billy’s Raw Bar & Ribs at the Shoppes at University Place. The Charlotte resident arrived drunk and consumed more alcohol at the bar, according to court records, then walked with his friends around the lake that abuts the shopping complex.
Lovett jumped into the lake, according to the lawsuit, prompting several bystanders to pull him out. But when he jumped into the lake a second time and disappeared under the surface, his friends called police.
Divers with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department couldn’t find Lovett and filed a missing persons report. The divers returned the next morning and pulled Lovett’s body from the water.
In May 2021, Lovett’s mother, Mary Lovett, sued the University Place Owner’s Association, Tricor International and EBA Crystal Real Estate for negligence. But Mecklenburg County Judge Gregory Hayes sided with the businesses, saying her allegations weren’t grounds to sue.
Contributory negligence
North Carolina is one of relatively few states to follow a strict contributory negligence law, which essentially prevents plaintiffs from suing over situations in which they had a hand. A driver who disobeyed a minor traffic law during an accident, for example, wouldn’t be able to pursue a lawsuit against a drunk, speeding motorist who would be considered more – but not entirely – responsible for the situation.
“It leads to some unjust results,” the Lovett family’s attorney, Gary Mauney, told The Charlotte Observer. “I think the rule in North Carolina is something that should be revisited by the legislature… We’re just fighting a rule that makes it very difficult for a plaintiff.”
The Lovett family appealed Hayes’ decision in January. In a brief filed with the state Court of Appeals, Lovett’s mother argued that her son’s drunken state was “involuntary.”
Lovett lived with an alcohol dependency and disability stemming from a childhood illness, according to his family’s lawsuit. The Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner’s Office noted that, at the time of his drowning, Lovett’s blood alcohol content was .37 – nearly five times the legal limit to drive.
And while a plaintiff’s contribution to a dangerous situation prevents them from suing for negligence in North Carolina, there’s an exception for cases where the defendant’s negligence was “willful and wanton.”
Three appellate judges – Fred Gore, Lucy Inman and John Tyson – acknowledged the legal basis for that argument in their opinion but determined that Lovett himself had been grossly negligent by drinking and jumping into the lake.
So while his mother focused on the lack of safety measures near where Lovett drowned – including strong barriers, emergency call boxes or life preservers – the trio of businesses redirected attention to Lovett’s decisions to drink and enter the lake twice.
This story was originally published September 7, 2022 at 6:10 AM.
