What is Negligent Security in Maryland Law?

If you're planning to buy property in Maryland, you should be aware of some of the laws that directly regulate what you should do on said property. The law in question in this article is negligent security, and it will directly affect how you have to manage your property.

In short, property owners in Maryland have the legal obligation to ensure that any person on their premises won't be a victim of preventable crimes. If the owner fails to provide the recommended levels of security and a crime does happen, they may be liable under the eyes of the law.

Basics of Negligent Security Law in Maryland

Some property owners, such as business owners, homeowners, private park administrators, and other similar people, wrongfully believe that putting up a sign is enough. It isn't. It's not nearly enough.

Commercial property owners, for example, have to put slippery floor signs where necessary, eliminate fire hazards, make sure that nothing will fall on a visitor's head, and prevent crimes committed by other visitors or intruders.

If a visitor gets assaulted, injured, or has their stuff stolen by a third party, then they can sue the property owner or manager for negligent security. Realistically speaking, if the assault could have been prevented or made less severe by putting up relevant security measures, then the plaintiff has the entire legal right to sue.

To make things clearer, these types of lawsuits usually involve retail and commercial businesses, such as apartment complexes, hotels, parking garages, shipping centers, cinemas, and other similar places. There are many factors that can contribute to a negligent security lawsuit in commercial places, such as inefficient lights, defective doors, lack of security guards, lack of cameras, and so forth.

Examples of Negligent Security Scenarios

Let's say you want to park your vehicle in a private parking garage. An intruder sneaks inside and tries to steal stuff from your car. If the garage is dimly lit, there's only one guard (or none at all, and everything's automated), and there's only one security camera that fails to capture the intruder on the footage, then you can sue for negligent security.

Similarly, if there's no doorman at an apartment complex and there aren't many security cameras or other deterrents. Granted, there is a backyard common area that requires you to use a keycard to access it. However, the keycard system has been broken for some time. If a perpetrator does come in and steals something from your apartment you are entitled to sue the property owner for negligent security.

Similarly, if a perpetrator beats you up due to the property's lack of security measures, you can call ​​Aberdeen personal injury lawyers to evaluate your case. In most instances, you can sue for damages quite easily as long as the happenings similar to the ones above have taken place.

Limitations, Proof, and Court Rulings

In Maryland, negligent security cases have a statute of limitations up to three years since the date of the harm. This is why contacting the appropriate lawyers must be done as fast as possible.

Furthermore, as the plaintiff, you need to prove that the business or property owner was well aware of the issues at hand. If the issues appeared overnight and the owner had no idea about them, then they might not be obligated to pay you any damages. However, if the defects were well visible and not just something that happened in one sitting, then you will be able to ask for justice from them.

On the other hand, if the court rules that the security measures were adequate, then you might not win the case. Proving an owner's guilt in such cases can be quite difficult, so, again, you're going to need a good lawyer.

The Bottom Line

Negligent security law in Maryland is complex yet easy to understand at the same time. If you're ever a victim of such neglect, contact the authorities and a competent lawyer as soon as possible.

Author Bio: Dorothea W. Pierce was born into a family of attorneys and was raised with a strong sense of justice. During her high school years, she developed a passion for journalism and decided to combine this with her knowledge of the law. She realized that she can make her voice heard to the masses through legal journalism. Dorothea is honored to follow and report on any legal case. She shares her analysis in reader-friendly articles.

(Devdiscourse's journalists were not involved in the production of this article. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Devdiscourse and Devdiscourse does not claim any responsibility for the same.)