A police officer who is suing a village hall for £40,000 after falling out of the wedding venue has been accused of being drunk and toppling off her high heels.
Detective Constable Shirley Carr is suing the charitable trust which runs Portmoak Village Hall after the accident at a friend’s marriage ceremony left her scarred for life.
Carr has raised a claim for £40,000 damages at Perth Sheriff Court after her trip left her with a broken foot and a scar on her chin. But the village hall is fighting the claim and said it was the off-duty police officer’s own fault because she was drunk, wearing high heels, went out the wrong door and failed to look where she was going.
Carr had been a guest at the wedding in Kinnesswood on May 6 2012, and was leaving with her partner Dan Pulfrey and others when she stumbled off a slab.
“They were leaving through an emergency exit door which had been open most of the day and at the evening reception,” her court action states.
“She was unaware of the drop between the edge of the slab and the surface of the lane. It was dark. There were no warning signs about the step or unexpected drop.
“The edge of the slab was not highlighted. The external light above the exit door was not in working order. She stumbled off the edge of the raised slab and lost her balance.
“As a result of the accident she sustained loss, injury and damage.”
She admitted in court papers that she had two glasses of wine and three vodka and colas and had been wearing shoes with three and a half inch high heels at the function.
When she tripped, she broke her left cuboid bone in her foot, sprained her wrists and cut her chin and left temple. Both facial injuries left permanent scars.
She was rushed from the wedding to hospital by ambulance and claimed in the court action that the incident had left her “psychologically distressed”.
Part of her claim relates to the £1,200 cost of two weeks’ rehab treatment at the Castlebrae Police Treatment Centre in Auchterarder.
Carr, 36, from Hamilton, is also seeking £24.30 petrol costs for travelling to physio appointments and £12.20 for a waterproof leg cover.
But the village hall has lodged a robust defence of the claim and stated that “the sum sued for is excessive” and that the accident was her own fault.
“All guests had been directed to exit the premises from the front door,” the trust’s lawyer stated. “She was drunk at the time of leaving the premises.
“After the accident she apologised for falling down because she had too much to drink.”
The case has called at Perth Sheriff Court and a proof has been set for later this year.