A widow claims her 80-year-old husband died ten days after he allegedly fell and sustained a serious head injury while walking up concrete steps that had no handrails at a popular equestrian supply store in Ocala.
Attorneys representing Myra J. Bruning filed the lawsuit against Tack Shack of Ocala, Inc., in the Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Marion County on June 27.
According to the complaint, Thomas H. Bruning visited the Tack Shack at 418 SW 60th Avenue in Ocala on October 12, 2024.
During his visit, at approximately 10 a.m., Bruning walked up the rear concrete stairwell at the business, which consisted of “3 non-sloped concrete steps without handrails.”
While he was ascending, the complaint alleges that Bruning “slipped and fell backwards with force over an abrupt, dangerous, inconspicuous, not readily apparent, unattended, uncorrected, unexpected, unmarked, and unwarned change of elevation.”
The fall caused him to sustain “serious bodily injuries, including to his head,” according to the lawsuit.
On October 22, 2024, Bruning succumbed to his injuries.
The complaint accuses the property owner of creating and ignoring dangerous conditions that allegedly led to the death of Bruning.
Mrs. Bruning’s attorneys argue that Tack Shack failed to inspect, maintain, or correct the stairwell where the alleged incident took place. They also claim the business neglected to warn Mr. Bruning of the danger and failed to install proper safety features.
The attorneys further allege that Tack Shack disregarded its own policies, engaged in unsafe practices, and violated building and safety codes, among other accusations.
“Tack Shack knew or should have known that the premises, including but not limited to access and egress route(s) to/from the property’s rear entry/exit doors, the required accessible route(s) to/from the rear of the property, the foreseeable pedestrian path(s) and walking surface(s), violated and/or did not comply with one or more statutes, ordinances, codes, standards, rules, acts, and/or regulations, intended to protect individuals such as Thomas H. Bruning, from the type of loss, injury, and/or damage suffered by the him,” reads a portion of the complaint.
As a result of the incident, Bruning allegedly sustained injuries that “ultimately led to” his death.
Mrs. Bruning, who lives in Bradford County, is seeking over $50,000 in damages, exclusive of attorney’s fees.
Marion County court records show that Tampa-based attorneys filed a notice of appearance on August 20 to announce their representation of the business.
Thomas Henry “Hank” Bruning owned Bruning Construction Company. According to his obituary, Bruning served as a sergeant with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and as a commissioner for Clay County. He also served in the United States Air Force.