Can I Sue for Being Shot or Stabbed in Pittsburgh?

Can I sue for being shot or stabbed in Pittsburgh?

Often, yes. If you were shot or stabbed on a Pittsburgh property — an apartment complex, bar or nightclub, parking garage, store, hotel, or transit stop — and the owner failed to provide the reasonable security a foreseeable risk called for, Pennsylvania law may let you hold that owner financially responsible through a negligent-security claim. You are not suing for the crime itself; you are suing the property owner for the security failures that made a foreseeable attack possible. This is separate from any criminal case against the attacker.

Pittsburgh negligent-security law — the short version

Pittsburgh cases are governed by Pennsylvania law. Pennsylvania applies Restatement §344 — owners must guard against foreseeable third-party crime, shown mainly by prior similar incidents. A negligent-security lawsuit here is generally filed in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas (Fifth Judicial District of Pennsylvania). For the full Pennsylvania standard — deadlines, how fault is shared, and what you can recover — see our Pennsylvania negligent security page.

Public safety in Pittsburgh

Homicides in Allegheny County fell to their lowest total in nearly two decades in 2025, part of three straight years of decline, and non-fatal shootings followed the same downward path. As always, a negligent-security claim depends less on citywide numbers than on the documented history of prior incidents at the particular property where the attack happened.

Where these cases happen in Pittsburgh

In Pittsburgh, these claims commonly arise along dense nightlife corridors — most notably the South Side Flats and the East Carson Street bar district, which has for years carried one of the city’s higher concentrations of violent incidents — as well as in the downtown core and around Pittsburgh Regional Transit stations. Common property types are bars and nightclubs and their parking areas, apartment complexes, downtown parking garages and lots, and retail.

Good to know in Pittsburgh

A Pittsburgh negligent-security case is filed in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, part of Pennsylvania’s Fifth Judicial District.

Deadlines for a Pittsburgh case

• Negligence / personal injury: generally two years from the date of the incident from the date of the incident.
• Wrongful death: generally two years from the date of death.

Surveillance footage and other evidence disappear quickly, so it is important to act fast.

Why Pittsburgh victims choose The Haggard Law Firm

The firm has handled nearly 500 negligent-security cases nationwide and secured the largest negligent-security verdict in U.S. history ($102.7 million). We help Pittsburgh crime victims and their families with no fee unless we win.

How we handle a Pennsylvania case — working with local counsel

The Haggard Law Firm is based in Coral Gables, Florida, and Michael A. Haggard is licensed to practice law in Florida. Mr. Haggard is not licensed in Pennsylvania. Negligent security and crime-victim litigation is the firm’s core focus, and because of the national reputation the firm has built in this specific area, Mr. Haggard regularly works on Pennsylvania cases as co-counsel with a locally licensed Pennsylvania attorney, seeking admission pro hac vice (for the individual case) where the court’s rules permit. Any Pennsylvania matter would be handled together with local counsel admitted in Pennsylvania.

If you were shot, stabbed, or lost a loved one to a preventable crime in Pennsylvania, you can still reach out to us directly. We will review your case for free and, where appropriate, associate with a qualified Pennsylvania attorney to pursue it.

This page is attorney advertising and general information only; it is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Michael A. Haggard is licensed in Florida. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.