In a compelling legal battle, a Pennsylvania resident has filed a lawsuit against two corporations for alleged negligence that resulted in severe injuries. Barry Franklyn Bartusiak initiated the complaint on February 27, 2025, in the Circuit Court of the Sixth Judicial Circuit in Pinellas County, Florida. The defendants named in the case are Columbia Sussex Corp., doing business as Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort and Spa, and John S Taylor Properties LLC.

The lawsuit stems from an incident on April 12, 2023, when Bartusiak was visiting the Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort and Spa as a business invitee. According to the complaint, while walking through the resort’s parking lot, Bartusiak slipped on water that had accumulated on a speedbump painted with an unsuitable coating. This fall allegedly led to significant permanent injuries for Bartusiak, including pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life. Additionally, he claims to have incurred medical expenses and lost wages due to his inability to work following the accident.

Bartusiak accuses Columbia Sussex Corp., which operates the hotel at the property owned by John S Taylor Properties LLC, of failing to maintain safe conditions at their premises. The plaintiff argues that both defendants had a duty to ensure reasonable care in maintaining their property but breached this duty by allowing a hazardous condition to persist. “As a direct result of this negligence,” Bartusiak asserts in his complaint, “I suffered permanent bodily injury.”