On the morning of June 9, 2012, plaintiff Alanna Andrus, a registered nurse practitioner in her 40s, exited her parked car in a municipal parking lot in downtown Redwood City. She subsequently stepped up onto the curb and attempted to take a shortcut through a tree well that was between the parking lot and the sidewalk of Middlefield Road. The tree well contained a tree, wood chips/wood debris and a sprinkler head riser from an antiquated sprinkler system. As Andrus crossed the wood debris, she tripped and fell forward onto the crosswalk of Middlefield Road, sustaining an injury to her right pinky finger. Andrus sued the city of Redwood City. She alleged that the city failed to properly repair and/or maintain the area, creating a dangerous condition of public property. Andrus claimed that she tripped on a broken, abandoned sprinkler head riser, which was next to a piece of bent rebar. She also claimed that the tree that was in the tree well cast a shadow over the wood chips/wood debris and that the wood chips/wood debris were not fully contained in the tree well, causing them to spill onto the sidewalk. Andrus further claimed that there was no reflective tape around the sprinkler head riser or on the rebar and that the subject sprinkler head riser and rebar constituted a dangerous condition. Defense counsel contended that the city’s property, which included hardscape paths available to exit the parking lot, as well as included the tree well with the sprinkler head riser and rebar, did not constitute a dangerous condition because it did not create a substantial risk of injury when used with due care. Counsel further contended that the city did not have notice of the alleged dangerous condition, including complaints regarding the area or prior accidents, before Andrus’ fall., Andrus put out her hands to break her fall. As a result, she sustained a comminuted fracture of the pinky finger on her right, dominant hand. Andrus drove her minor son home and then had a neighbor drive her to the emergency room at Stanford Hospital. She underwent surgery three days later, followed by four additional surgeries, all of which did not restore movement to the finger. Thus, Andrus claimed that all five surgeries failed. Andrus claimed that her right pinky finger is left in a permanent, fixed, bent position. She also claimed that she developed arthritis in her finger, causing pain. She claimed that as a result, she took pain medication for a while, but that she will require at least one, and possibly more, surgeries on the injured finger. Andrus claimed that her duties as a school nurse at The Harker School were impacted, as she had to adjust to an alternate method of wearing gloves for her job. She also claimed that she had to relearn how to care for the children, change sheets on the beds, and apply band aids. Andrus further claimed that she now has trouble grasping things and that she had to learn to adapt and retrain herself in daily activities, such as how to open jars or hold a cup of coffee without it spilling. In addition, she claimed that she has trouble with cooking, gardening, brushing her teeth, and applying makeup and that driving became an issue, as she her hand becomes stuck in the steering wheel. Thus, Andrus claimed that she is very self-conscious about the injury. Andrus sought recovery of approximately $171,000, after Howell reductions, in past medical costs, between $18,000 and $72,000 in future medical costs, $6,647 in past lost wages, and $384,376 in lost earning capacity. She also sought recovery of damages for her past and future pain and suffering.