GMR Partner Warren Holland successfully defended an insured client civilly sued for assault and battery by his neighbor. The fifty-four-year-old plaintiff alleged she was assaulted and battered by a twenty-one-year-old defendant during a property line dispute.
Although Ring Doorbell footage confirmed the defendant pushed the plaintiff to the ground (breaking the plaintiff’s left elbow), the footage also showed the plaintiff punching the defendant in the back of the head as the defendant was attempting to break up a fight between two men. While the plaintiff argued she did not make physical contact with the defendant and that the defendant used excessive force, the jury disagreed and found that the defendant was acting in self-defense.
