Being harmed by a criminal act on someone else’s property is terrifying. You may be dealing with serious physical injuries, emotional trauma, and mounting medical bills, all while trying to figure out who is responsible. If a property owner’s failure to provide reasonable security made that crime possible, Texas law may give you the right to hold them accountable. At Chandler Ross Injury Attorneys, we represent injured people in Justin and across Denton County who have been hurt because a property owner cut corners on safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Negligent security is a claim that falls under Texas premises liability law. It holds property owners responsible when their failure to provide reasonable security measures allows a foreseeable crime to happen, and someone gets hurt as a result. This is not about blaming a business simply because a crime occurred on its property. It is about proving that the owner knew, or should have known, that criminal activity was a real risk, and did nothing meaningful to prevent it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Texas courts established the framework for these claims in Timberwalk Apartments, Partners, Inc. v. Cain<\/em>, 972 S.W.2d 749 (Tex. 1998). That case confirmed that while property owners generally have no duty to protect people from third-party criminal acts, an important exception exists. A property owner who controls premises does have a duty to use ordinary care to protect invitees from criminal acts if the owner knows or has reason to know of an unreasonable and foreseeable risk of harm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Foreseeability is the heart of every negligent security case. Texas courts look at four key factors to decide whether a crime was foreseeable: the proximity of prior crimes to the property, how recently and how often those crimes occurred, how similar the prior crimes were to the one that hurt you, and how publicly known those crimes were. If a parking lot near FM 156 in Justin had a documented history of vehicle break-ins and assaults, and the property owner ignored that history, a new attack on that lot could give rise to a valid claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The duty applies most strongly to invitees, meaning people who enter a property for the benefit of the owner, such as customers at a store, tenants at an apartment complex, or guests at a hotel. As an invitee, you are owed the highest duty of care under Texas law. If you were lawfully on the property when you were harmed, that duty applies to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Negligent security incidents happen in places that seem ordinary, which is exactly why they catch people off guard. Apartment complexes, hotel parking lots, convenience stores, shopping centers, bars, nightclubs, and parking garages are among the most common locations where these claims arise. In Justin and the surrounding Denton County area, commercial growth along Highway 156 and near the FM 407 corridor has brought more businesses, and with that, more situations where security obligations matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Apartment complexes are a frequent source of negligent security claims. Landlords in Texas have a legal duty to provide a reasonably safe environment for tenants and their guests. Broken gate locks, burned-out parking lot lights, missing security cameras, and a lack of any security presence can all contribute to an attack that never should have happened. If you or someone in your household was assaulted in a common area of an apartment complex in Justin, the property management company may bear legal responsibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hotels and motels along the I-35W corridor near Denton County also generate these claims. A hotel that ignores reports of trespassers or known criminal activity on its grounds, and then fails to add lighting, working locks, or security patrols, may be held liable when a guest is subsequently attacked. The same logic applies to bars and entertainment venues where alcohol is served and altercations are predictable without proper security staffing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Parking lots and garages deserve special attention. Poor lighting, broken security cameras, and a lack of security personnel create conditions where robberies and assaults are far more likely. If you were robbed or attacked in a parking area near a retail center or restaurant in the Justin area, the property owner’s failure to maintain basic security measures may have directly contributed to your injuries. These are exactly the types of cases our team at Chandler Ross Injury Attorneys handles for clients across Denton County.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Texas follows a proportionate responsibility system under Chapter 33 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. This means a jury assigns a percentage of fault to each party involved in causing your harm. Under Section 33.013, a defendant is liable to you only for the percentage of damages equal to their share of responsibility. However, if a defendant is found more than 50 percent responsible, they become jointly and severally liable for all of your recoverable damages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a negligent security case, the actual criminal who attacked you may also be assigned a percentage of fault. Texas courts allow defendants to designate unknown third parties as responsible parties. Under Section 33.011 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code, a defendant may, within 60 days of filing their original answer, allege that an unknown person committed a criminal act that caused your injuries. If the court finds the defendant has pleaded facts showing a reasonable probability that the act was criminal, the unknown person can be designated as a responsible third party, sometimes listed as “John Doe” or “Jane Doe.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n This matters because it can reduce the property owner’s share of fault on paper. A skilled attorney knows how to counter this tactic by building a strong case around the owner’s failure to act, and showing that the crime would not have occurred, or would have been far less likely, if proper security had been in place. The property owner’s negligence does not disappear simply because someone else committed the crime. Both can share responsibility under Texas law.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhere Negligent Security Incidents Commonly Happen in Justin and Denton County<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
How Texas Law Handles Fault in Negligent Security Cases<\/h2>\n\n\n\n