Nazar Hussain Shahid lost control of his car and hit Marcella Jiminez and her son, Justin Abundiz, while they were standing on their building's front steps.
Although Justin tried to escape by running into the building, he wasn't able to open the door because it was "poorly maintained" and "unreasonably difficult to open." When mother and son later sued the building's owner (and others) alleging negligence, the Kings County Supreme Court denied the landlord's dismissal request.
Because it didn't think the landlord could have reasonably anticipated what transpired, or otherwise safeguarded its tenants from injury, the Appellate Division, Second Department, reversed and let the owner out of the case.
They curbed that liability. 
To view a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Jiminez v. Shahid