Vasquez

In August 2000 a jealous boyfriend broke into the apartment of his estranged girlfriend and murdered her. In this wrongful death action, plaintiffs allege defendants, owners of the apartment building, were negligent by not replacing a missing pane of glass in the apartment’s front door used by the murderer to obtain entry, and that negligence substantially contributed to the decedent’s death by expediting the murderer’s entry into the apartment. The trial court entered summary judgment for Owners, and we reverse.

I

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

A. Condition of the Premises

Abigail Ramirez (decedent) and her infant daughter lived with decedent’s parents in an apartment (Apartment 6) in a building owned by Owners. The front door to Apartment 6 is a wood door with diamond- and triangular-shaped glass panes in the top half. When the family moved in, one of the glass panes was missing and a piece of cardboard covered the opening. Shortly after moving in, decedent’s mother (Elsa) complained to the apartment manager and requested the missing pane be replaced because it was “pretty cold.” Decedent’s parents made several subsequent requests that the glass pane be replaced because they…