Negligence By City Of Joliet Prompts Lawsuit From Woman Out Walking Her Dog: Lawyer Seeks $50,000 Or More

JOLIET, IL — The city of Joliet's broken roads and crumbling public sidewalks continue to result in more civil lawsuits being filed against Joliet this year. This week, Rhonda Northrup filed her lawsuit against Joliet. She's represented by the Peru law firm of Schweickert Ganassin Krzak and Rundio.

Her lawsuit seeks a monetary judgment against Joliet in excess of $50,000. According to the filing, Joliet owned, operated, maintained or controlled the sidewalk near 1704 Taylor Street and the sidewalk was open to the public.

The lawsuit contends that the Taylor Street sidewalk "contained a raised portion that the public encountered while walking upon the sidewalk ... the sidewalk was in a dangerous condition because it existed in a broken, dilapidated condition that presented a tripping hazard."

Last June 19, Northrup was trying to navigate the sidewalk while walking her dog, according to her lawyer Adriane LaShure.

"Plaintiff, Rhonda Northrup was caused to fall after she encountered the broken, dilipidated sidewalk," her lawsuit revealed. The lawsuit contends that "defendant, city of Joliet ... knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known that the broken sidewalk where the public would walk upon presented a tripping hazard."

Northrup's Will County civil lawsuit accuses Joliet of carelessly and negligently failing to inspect the sidewalk "so as to detect defects that could cause the plaintiff to trip and fall." The lawsuit also accuses Joliet of having "permitted the sidewalk to exist in an unsafe condition when it knew the public would encounter it and or failed to make timely repairs to the broken, dilipidated sidewalk before the date of June 19, 2025."

The lawsuit contains two black and white photos, close ups, showing the Taylor Street sidewalk where Northrup apparently tripped and fell to the ground. Her Chicago lawyer indicated that Northrup suffered "injuries of a personal, permanent and pecuniary nature.

"Plaintiff Rhonda Northrup prays that judgment be entered in her favor and against defendant city of Joliet for an amount in excess of the minimum jurisdictional limits of this court and for the cost of this suit," LaShure wrote.