Woman's unsafe property claim against Alpena Community College is dismissed

Diana Standen fell while leaving a building at the college. She argued that the descending slope away from the buiding was unsafe because there was a "loose brick" or "hole" where she fell.  The College's attorneys argued that since the walkway was some distance from the building and not an inherent part of the building's structure, the College was immune from liability.

In recent decades, a number of Michigan Supreme Court rulings have reinforced governmental immunity and restricted the breadth of the exceptions to governmental immunity.  While Standen argued that her injury came under the exception that requires governmental entities to be responsible for negligently maintained public buidings, the Court of Appeals disagreed and affirmed the summary disposition of her claim.