On Aug. 5, 2009, plaintiff Raul Duarte, 41, a grocery store clerk, was shopping at Save Mart Supermarket in Fresno. While he was in the produce section, Duarte slipped and fell on a kiwi that was on the floor. He claimed that as a result, his lower back was injured. Duarte sued Save Mart Supermarkets. He alleged that the defendant negligently maintained its premises, creating a dangerous condition. He also alleged that the defendant had notice of the condition and failed to warn its patrons. Duarte claimed that he slipped and fell on a kiwi that had fallen off a display in the produce section. He alleged that the employees of Save Mart Supermarkets failed to adequately inspect the produce section and/or provide warnings of any potential slipping hazards caused by stacked fruit slipping onto the floor. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that Save Mart falsified its incident report to reflect that the floor had been swept 15 minutes before the slip-and-fall incident. Counsel argued that surveillance footage proved that the defendant’s employees also falsified the “Produce Floor Inspection Sheet” in that the floor was not swept 15 minutes before the accident, as the defendant claimed. Save Mart’s counsel argued that Duarte was negligent in causing his own injury, since the kiwi on the floor was an open and obvious condition that the plaintiff should have noticed. Save Mart denied that any of its documents were falsified, and claimed that the plaintiff had no evidence of any falsification of any documents. Save Mart further claimed that its “Produce Floor Inspection Sheet” accurately noted that the floor was inspected within 30 minutes prior to the incident., One day after the accident, Duarte went to an urgent care facility with complaints of lower back pain as a result of twisting it during the slip and fall. He subsequently underwent an MRI and was diagnosed with lumbar disc herniations at the L4-5 and L5-S1 levels. He then followed up with chiropractic care and physical therapy over the course of roughly three years. In September 2012, Duarte underwent a two-level fusion at L4-5 and L5-S1, and followed up with more physical therapy. Duarte claimed that he is still treating with physical therapy and claimed roughly $170,000 in total medical costs. He also claimed he opened a small restaurant with his wife after the accident, but had to close it down due his condition and impending surgery. Thus, Duarte sought recovery of damages for a loss of future earning capacity, as well as damages for his past and future pain and suffering. Defense counsel contended that Duarte suffered from a pre-existing congenital lower back condition, and that the subject incident did not cause his claimed injury. Thus, counsel contended that the lumbar herniations and fusion surgery were not causally related to the incident.