HB 6529 2025
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act for the relief of J.N., a minor, by 2
Hillsborough County; providing an appropriation to 3
Stephany Grullon, as parent and guardian of J.N., to 4
compensate J.N. for injuries and damages she sustained 5
as a result of the negligence of Hillsborough County 6
in maintaining sidewalks and culvert systems; 7
providing a limitation on compensation and the payment 8
of certain fees and costs; providing an effective 9
date. 10
11
WHEREAS, on the afternoon of June 7, 2019, J.N., then 11 12
years of age, was riding her bicycle, accompanied by her 13
mother's fiancé, Gabriel Soto, on a sidewalk located along the 14
east side of East Bay Road and adjacent to the East Bay Lakes 15
subdivision in Gibsonton, and 16
WHEREAS, the sidewalk is owned and maintained by 17
Hillsborough County, and 18
WHEREAS, J.N. was wearing her helmet while riding her 19
bicycle when her bicycle wheel hit an uneven area of the 20
concrete slab sidewalk, causing her to lose control of her 21
bicycle and tumble down a steep slope next to the sidewalk, and 22
WHEREAS, J.N. careened face forward over the bicycle's 23
handlebars into a concrete and corrugated metal drainage culvert 24
pipe and lacerated portions of her gums, fractured her jaw, and 25
HB 6529 2025
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
avulsed multiple adult teeth, and 26
WHEREAS, J.N. was rushed to the emergency room at St. 27
Joseph's Hospital, where she underwent a CT scan that revealed 28
fractures of the nasal bone, the maxilla, and the superior 29
alveolus, and 30
WHEREAS, the severity of her i njuries required plastic 31
surgery intervention, and on June 8, 2019, J.N. underwent a 32
surgical procedure consisting of exploration and removal of the 33
gingiva impacted into her nasal structures and into the upper 34
maxilla, repair of the midline laceration of her upper lip, and 35
repair of her gingiva and lower lip vermilion, and 36
WHEREAS, on June 14, 2019, J.N. underwent a second surgery 37
consisting of a closed reduction of her nasal fracture, and 38
WHEREAS, on February 20, 2021, J.N. was seen by Pediatric 39
Epilepsy and Neurology Specialists due to headaches that she 40
experienced as frequently as once or twice a week and which had 41
first started shortly after the accident, and 42
WHEREAS, on March 16, 2022, J.N. was seen by an oral 43
surgeon at the Moffett Oral Surgery an d Dental Implant Center, 44
during which time she was informed that she would need a bone 45
graft and eventually an implant, and 46
WHEREAS, J.N. has to wait for her bones to finish growing 47
before Dr. Moffett can proceed with the bone graft, which he 48
expects will be when J.N. is 16 or 17 years old, and 49
WHEREAS, after J.N. heals from her bone graft, Moffett Oral 50
HB 6529 2025
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Surgery and Dental Implant Center will then begin the process 51
for implants and, eventually, crowns, and 52
WHEREAS, along with the medical treatment and bil ls 53
associated with this injury, J.N. has suffered intangible and 54
emotional losses, has experienced an extreme loss of self -55
esteem, and struggles socially with her peers, and 56
WHEREAS, Hillsborough County was on notice that the same 57
section of sidewalk wher e J.N. had her accident was in need of 58
repair and replacement as early as October 7, 2015, as evidenced 59
by the filing of a work request order, and 60
WHEREAS, in 2016, Juan Olivero Lopez, a Hillsborough County 61
maintenance supervisor responsible for sidewalk maintenance, 62
stated that he was directed by the county to inspect the 63
sidewalk, and 64
WHEREAS, Juan Olivero Lopez further stated that, in 65
response to the work request order, the South Service Unit 66
performed a physical inspection of the sidewalk before the d ate 67
of the accident, but that repairs to make the sidewalk safe were 68
never performed, and 69
WHEREAS, the drainage ditch and culvert system located next 70
to the sidewalk were also in need of maintenance and repair, as 71
evidenced by the extensive deterioration of the concrete and 72
corrugated metal drainage culvert pipe, which had become jagged 73
and rusted, and 74
WHEREAS, Hillsborough County employee William Cox, a civil 75
HB 6529 2025
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engineer responsible for drainage culvert replacement and 76
planning, stated that he was not respo nsible for the maintenance 77
of the culvert, and 78
WHEREAS, Juan Olivero Lopez stated that, in his capacity as 79
a maintenance supervisor of the South Service Unit, he was not 80
responsible for the maintenance of the culvert, and 81
WHEREAS, clearly there was a gap in assigning or accepting 82
responsibility for maintenance of the culvert, and the resulting 83
failure to repair the drainage ditch and culvert system, coupled 84
with the failure to repair or replace the sidewalk, contributed 85
to the severity of J.N.'s injuries, and 86
WHEREAS, J.N.'s parent and guardian, Stephany Grullon, and 87
Hillsborough County entered into a settlement and release 88
agreement on September 20, 2022, in which the county agreed to 89
pay Stephany Grullon $600,000 to settle all claims, and 90
WHEREAS, Hillsborough County paid $200,000, the sovereign 91
immunity limit under s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, to Stephany 92
Grullon within 20 days after entering into the settlement and 93
release agreement, and 94
WHEREAS, Hillsborough County acknowledged and agreed not to 95
oppose a legislative claims bill that would be filed during the 96
2023 Regular Session of the Legislature or in a subsequent 97
legislative session for the additional $400,000, and 98
WHEREAS, the $200,000 statutory limit under s. 768.28, 99
Florida Statutes, has been paid to Stephany Grullon, but the 100
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balance of $400,000 remains unpaid, NOW, THEREFORE, 101
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 103
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Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act 105
are found and declared to be true. 106
Section 2. Hillsborough County is authorized and directed 107
to appropriate from funds of the county not otherwise encumbered 108
and draw a warrant in the sum of $400,000 payable to Stephany 109
Grullon, as parent and guardian of J.N., to be placed in a trust 110
created for the exclusive use and benefit of J.N. for injuries 111
and damages sustained. 112
Section 3. The amount paid by Hillsborough County pursuant 113
to s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the amount awarded under 114
this act are intended to provide the sole compensation for al l 115
present and future claims arising out of the factual situation 116
described in this act which resulted in injuries and damages to 117
J.N. The total amount paid for attorney fees and costs, lobbying 118
fees, and other similar expenses relating to this claim may no t 119
exceed 25 percent of the total amount awarded under this act. 120
Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 121