COLUMBIA -- The city has paid millions to settle lawsuits in the past two years, ranging from car accidents, to rabid dog bites, to sidewalk slip-and-falls.

According to information received in a Freedom of Information Act request, the city of Columbia has settled 37 cases since the start of 2024, totaling $2.3 million in payouts to victims.

By far, most of the lawsuits were related to motor vehicle accidents, with 19 lawsuits resulting in $892,720 in damages.

But there were some outliers, like a firefighter who sued the city for alleged sexual harassment, a family who says their daughter was bit by a rabid dog at an animal shelter, and a grandmother who claimed police barged into her house and detained her grandson for burglary while he was attending school virtually.

Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann said the city has a contingency budget for lawsuit payments. But Columbia is currently facing a potential $6 million payout that city leaders said would cut into funds for long-term stormwater projects if they were made to pay.

A judge found the city liable for the closure of Constan Car Wash, which operated at 1950 Gervais St. in Five Points from 1949 to 2022, after decades of flooding issues at the site and a dispute over the city's demolition of a wall the owner built to keep the water out in 2021. The city plans to appeal the judgment.

Motor vehicle accidents

A couple of cases were the result of high-speed police chases, and one blamed a firetruck for sideswiping a car. Most were more mundane. Many of the suits mirror a similar complaint: a city employee accidentally backed into a car without warning or rear-ended a car in front of them.

The mayor said city employees are required to take driving courses through the Columbia Police Department. The city is considering requiring all employees go through the training again, with an additional course focused on backing up and parking included.

"That's one of the things we emphasize: you guys got to know your surroundings. You got to pay attention," Rickenmann said.

Crumbling concrete

Some of the highest payouts came from lawsuit settlements related to injuries sustained from falling on uneven concrete along sidewalks and in parking garages around the city.

One woman fell into a pothole in the sidewalk on Blanding Street and broke both of her ankles.

Two cases complained of uneven sidewalks in Five Points.

One woman was on her way back from work, walking down the steps of the Lady Street garage. She said a safety strip had come off the edge of the step, making the concrete crumble beneath her foot and causing her to fall down the stairs.

Of nine such cases in the last two years, four of the settlements were for more than six figures. All together, the city paid $892,500 in cases related to deteriorating sidewalks and parking garages.

The mayor said the city's street division tries to keep up with the sidewalk maintenance as best they can, but they don't have dedicated "sidewalk inspectors." He also said new problems can crop up daily.

For example, Rickenmann said a sidewalk was recently inspected, but it has to be reevaluated after a recent heavy rainstorm lifted a tree's roots, causing the sidewalk to become uneven.

At-Large Councilmember Aditi Bussells, who is an outspoken proponent of making Columbia's streets more walkable, said the city's approach in the past had been more of a piecemeal, "Band-Aid" fix on crumbling sidewalks. Now, with the funds from the Penny Tax, Bussells said the city will be able to comprehensively repave sidewalks to help increase pedestrian safety.

The mayor said with "miles and miles" of sidewalk in the city, it's impossible to keep track of every problem, unless community members report the issues.

"It's an ongoing thing. We try to fix them and address them as quickly as possible," Rickenmann said. "I wish there was a better solution, but there's really not. You got to do the best you can to get it reported."

Caleb Bozard contributed to this reporting.

Sidewalk slip and falls, fender benders and dog bites. Here's what Columbia paid to settle lawsuits.