A Warren County woman is suing the county government over injuries she allegedly sustained two years ago after tripping and falling on the sidewalk in front of the Warren County Courthouse.

In a lawsuit filed June 7, an attorney for  Rhonda Peery claims she “suffered serious, painful and permanent injuries to her left wrist” due to a fall on Sept. 24, 2019. The cause, according to the lawsuit, is that the sidewalk outside the courthouse was uneven and “not reasonably safe.”

“Rhonda Peery, while exercising due care and caution for her own safety, was walking along said sidewalk when she tripped over the uneven conrete and fell, sustaining injuries,” attorneys for Peery wrote in a court petition seeking at least $25,000 in damages.

The suit claims that the uneven ground surface constitutes negligence by the county, and blames the county for failing to post warning signs or rope off the area to prevent people from tripping on the dangerous sidewalk.

“Rhonda Peery did not have the chance to avoid the fall due to its sudden and unforeseeable nature,” the lawsuit claims. “The incident ... occurred with no negligence on the part of plaintiff Rhonda Peery.”

Attorneys added that Peery continues to suffer pain from her wrist injury and will likely need continued medical treatment.

Peery is being represented by attorneys Bradley W. Cundiff and Candice R. Burke with the law firm Coyne, Cundiff & Hillemann.

The Warren County Circuit Court has issued a summons for the county government to respond to the lawsuit. No response had been filed as of June 23.

In response to a request for comment from The Record, Presiding County Commissioner Joe Gildehaus said the county’s insurance company will handle the case on the county’s behalf.