Picture this: A Marine walking through a parking lot while carrying his newlywed wife in his arms steps into a pothole. Both fall to the ground. The wife hits her head and later dies from her injuries.
That's exactly what happened to a couple in Carlsbad last June, according to a lawsuit filed this month blaming the company that owns and manages Village Faire in Carlsbad where the accident happened. The company named in the suit is SVF, LLC located in Santa Barbara.
John Pinkham, 23, and his wife Robyn, 22, were at the Coyote Bar and Grill at Village Faire with friends on June 14, 2019. According to the lawsuit, "Later that evening and approximately into the morning," the couple and their friends left the restaurant after a night of dancing, and were walking to the group's car. "Young, in love and newlyweds, John Pinkham was carrying his wife Robyn Pinkham in his arms as they moved toward the group's car. As John Pinkham walked through the poorly lit, uneven and pothole ridden parking lot while lovingly holding his wife, John stepped into a pothole causing him to lose his footing and fall forward."
John Pinkham was injured and Robyn Pinkham was taken to the hospital where she died five days later.
People working at stores within Village Faire said the company takes good care of the space and patches the parking spaces every summer. One restaurant manager said the area in question is actually not a parking lot but a street owned by the city of Carlsbad. One side of that street is used by the North County Transit for commuter parking.
The law firm suing on behalf of the family said more defendants could be added to the suit. The law firm did not answer questions about whether the couple had been drinking and if that may have played a role in the fall.
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NBC 7 reached out to SVF, LLC by phone and was told the person who could comment on the lawsuit was unavailable.
