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Virginia man sues PetSmart, claims he slipped after stepping in feces at the store

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A Virginia man is suing PetSmart for $1 million after he slipped in a pile of you-know-what at a Newport News store location during a trip to purchase dog food and bird seed in early 2009.

The man, Robert Holloway, says he badly injured his back, requiring surgery, and lost four false teeth in the incident. (His attorney, Michael Goodove, acknowledged in an interview with the Virginian-Pilot that Holloway had an existing back problem at the time of the accident but says that his client’s condition worsened as a result of the slip.)

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The suit alleges that PetSmart staff ‘negligently allowed animals to enter the premises and deposit feces in such a manner as to create a dangerous and hazardous condition,’ according to documents acquired by the Virginian-Pilot. Goodove says Holloway didn’t see the feces because they blended in with the color of the store’s floor.

The Virginian-Pilot reports that the suit was initially filed in Norfolk Circuit Court, but PetSmart succeeded in getting it moved to U.S. District Court, where a similar suit against the company was dismissed in 2008.

In court documents, PetSmart denied the allegation of negligence, according to the Associated Press.

-- Lindsay Barnett

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