Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District / Aug 20, 2024
Patricia Nowell-Silman, Appellant, vs. Missouri Department of Public Safety Veterans' Commission d/b/a Missouri Veterans' Home, Respondent.
Patricia Nowell-Silman appealed the dismissal of her premises liability and wrongful death petition against the Missouri Veterans' Home (MVC) after her father, a resident, left the facility, fell, and died. She alleged a dangerous condition on MVC's property due to the lack of coded locks and resident monitors, which she claimed waived sovereign immunity. The appellate court affirmed the dismissal, holding that the absence of such devices did not constitute a physical defect in the property necessary to establish a dangerous condition under the sovereign immunity waiver statute.