Crime & Safety

Woman Suing Old Town Pub, City of Pasadena After Allegedly Being Injured by Electrical Vault Explosion

The pub owners want the city to share any potential liability.

A judge says he is inclined to deny Pasadena's motion to dismiss a cross-complaint by owners of a pub who want the city to share any potential liability for a woman's injuries suffered during an electrical accident.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel Buckley says in a tentative ruling that he agrees with the owners of the Old Towne Pub at 23 E. Holly St. that the city's municipal code does not insulate them from fault in the suit filed May 24 by patron Talar Gurunian.

Buckley is scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday afternoon before issuing a final ruling.

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Gurunian's suit names both the city and Old Towne Pub LLC as defendants. According to her complaint, she was standing in line in an alley with her friends waiting to enter the bar on Jan. 20 when there was "a sudden explosion due to a fire from a nearby electrical vault vent pipe which is owned by the city of Pasadena."

The explosion caused "fire and flames to come into contact with (Gurunian), causing injury," her complaint states.

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Passages of a deposition Gurunian gave Oct. 29 are included in documents the city filed regarding a separate motion. According to Gurunian, she felt electrical shock both during and after the explosion.

"Touching my car door, kitchen cabinets, there was a spark," Gurunian stated. "Sleeping with a woolen blanket rubbing against me, there were sparks. Things I hadn't ever seen before."

Old Towne Pub filed a cross-complaint against the city Sept. 12, asking to be compensated at least in part for any damages assessed against it in Gurunian's complaint. Lawyers for the city asked that the cross-complaint be dismissed, arguing that the municipality is not liable for injuries to people caused by the "use or application of electrical current."

Buckley rejected the argument.

"Old Towne correctly notes in opposition ... that nothing on the face of the complaint alleges (Gurunian) was injured due to use or application of electric current or failure to deliver current," Buckley wrote.


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