When your life as you knew it changes....

I often wondered  when people appeared in court would they lie under oath to save their own skin? Or, would they be compelled to tell the truth? I recently got my answer when I bought a Civil Suit against a slum lord. Honestly I believe I'm still in shock, but anyway here's my story...…..

At the time of my injury which caused me to be disabled for the rest of my life, I had  been living in this rental home for about 6 years. It wasn't in the best shape nor was it in the best neighborhood it was simply what I could afford. Before we get into "you should have just moved" you must understand it's much easier to say then do. I put a lot of my own money into the property trying to make it suitable for my daughter and I. However there were many things that I simply could not afford to do so I would bring these issues to the property manager and the owners attention. Most times the issues would be ignored.

I complained often about the porch attached to the rear of the home via phone calls and text messages. Often a contractor would come state the porch was "safe" and "the owner didn't want to pay him to do any work to the porch". I continuously took pictures and documented each and every complaint. I stopped allowing my daughter and her friends access to the porch, in spite of what the contractor said.

In June of 2016 my daughter asked if I could put some food on the grill for her and her friends. It was a Saturday and I was pretty much relaxing because I had to go to work on Sunday. I plugged my cell phone in so my daughter and her friends would have some music on while they sat at they table in the backyard. I alone was sitting in a chair on the porch. And this my friends is where my life would be forever changed..... I got up to go check the food on the grill and as I walked towards the door of the porch the floor board broke and my left foot went down through it! I immediately caught myself and began yelling profanities. (Obviously because my complaints fell on deaf ear's.) I yelled down to my daughter and told her to check the food on the grill and that I was going to bed due to having to go to work the next day. My daughter heard me yell and asked if I was alright. I replied yes and walked off the porch. I was so pissed. I walked off the porch angry and went upstairs to bed. 4:30 am comes around really quick, and Sunday's are my Monday.

At about 2:00 am I woke to go to the bathroom. As I stepped out my bed I fell to the floor, I kept trying to stand and kept falling. there was a sharp pain in my leg and I couldn't stand on my left foot. I was rushed to the hospital and immediately the doctor assumed the injury occurred on my job. (I guess because I was wearing a t-shirt from my job) I explained what occurred earlier at my home. the doctor took x-rays, gave me crutches and suggested I follow up with a podiatrist. About 3 hours after I returned home the emergency room doctor called to advise me to stay off my left foot due to bone fragments being chipped off the top of my foot.

I followed up with a podiatrist I had seen a month or so before. After seeing him several times he suggested I see his partner which I did. I was sent for what's called an "EMG" exam which revealed I had permanent nerve damage in my left leg. After months of being home my only option was to hire an attorney.

I recall a young man coming to my home to so call repair the porch. This man the owner claimed to be a licensed contractor. He was not, he was an addict on disability. This man came to my home left some tools, called the owner and told him he needed $300.00 dollars and went home and died from a overdose...