Gonzalez

I.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. The Incident.

Around 3:00 p.m. on December 31, 2007, plaintiff and her two minor

granddaughters were walking in the common area of the Ontario Mills Shopping Center

in front of a Converse store (between the Converse store and an art kiosk). Plaintiff

slipped and fell on what appeared to be oranges. The granddaughters, who were walking

two to three steps ahead, saw the oranges and were turning to warn plaintiff when she

fell. Earlier in the day, the three had walked in this area of the shopping center but had

not seen anything on the floor.

After she fell, plaintiff saw an orange substance she described as the separate,

smashed slices of at least one peeled orange. She did not know if the orange had been

smashed before or after she fell. Neither plaintiff nor her granddaughters saw anyone

2 spill or drop the oranges and they did not know where they had come from. Nor did they

know how long the oranges had been there.

An employee from the Converse store helped plaintiff into the store so she could

sit and wait for security to arrive. A worker from the art kiosk across from the Converse

store cleaned up the oranges. Finally, a…