A former George Washington University student who lived in Mitchell Hall says a flooded dorm suite in September 2023 left him hospitalized, forced him to withdraw from school, and caused injuries he calls permanent. Adam Johnson, of Fairfax, Virginia, filed an 11-page negligence complaint in D.C. Superior Court on September 3, days before the three-year window to sue over the incident was set to close.
According to The GW Hatchet, Johnson moved into Mitchell Hall in late August 2023, with his housing assignment coordinated through GW’s Disability Support Service office. He noticed water leaking from his air conditioner shortly after moving in and reported both the leak and a nonflushing toilet to GW maintenance staff, but university officials allegedly told him to keep living in the suite and to use communal restrooms in the building instead. Under District of Columbia law, the three-year statute of limitations for personal injury and property damage negligence claims generally runs from the negligent act or occurrence but may run from discovery of harm in some cases, according to Price Benowitz LLP, which places Johnson’s filing right at the legal deadline tied to the September 6, 2023, flooding.
A Flood That Reached the Bedroom
The Hatchet’s report states that Johnson’s suite flooded after he flushed the toilet on September 6, 2023, with floodwater extending into his bedroom. He reported the flooding to GW’s on-site repair facilities, but his lawyer argues that university officials failed to immediately repair or clean up the mess. On September 15, Johnson’s parents detected a foul mildew or fungus smell in his room. Johnson’s parents moved him out of Mitchell Hall on September 15, before his September 16 hospitalization.
Johnson was admitted to a hospital in Fairfax, Virginia, on September 16, 2023, for treatment related to adverse health impacts from the incident, the outlet reports. He later requested medical leave in November 2023 and, per his complaint, was unable to continue his studies because of his injuries. His attorney alleges he sustained serious, debilitating and permanent physical and psychological injuries, and says he continues to incur medical expenses.
Four Counts and a Jury Trial Request
Johnson’s lawyer has charged GW with negligence, gross negligence, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and breach of implied warranty of habitability, arguing that the university failed to inspect and maintain plumbing in his room and failed to respond to notice of a plumbing defect in a timely manner. The complaint also describes economic damages tied to personal-property loss, tuition, and costs related to what Johnson describes as a forced withdrawal. He is requesting $5 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, and his lawyer has requested a jury trial. Johnson could not be reached for comment, and his lawyer declined to comment when contacted by the Hatchet; GW officials did not return an immediate request for comment either, per the same report…