Chris Weitsman, 23, a Safeway employee, was skating down the sidewalk on inline skates at the Argonaut Shopping Center, headed toward the store.

Pan and Weitsman collided, both falling onto the concrete.

Jann Ichikawa was walking in front of Safeway that same morning. "The young man came around the corner and knocked her down," she said. "They were both on the ground. She was definitely hurting. I think the skates knocked right into her shins. I'm sure he didn't mean to do it but it certainly wasn't a safe thing to do."

Pan said she was in pain and limped back to Safeway to ask the store manager for help. After calling 911, police officers and paramedics arrived on the scene. Pan went to the hospital for X-rays and further treatment. She said she suffered great pain, swelling, ecchymosis, inflammation and emotional distress.

On Aug. 26, Pan's lawyer, Stanley Hilton, filed a case in Santa Clara Superior Court against Safeway, the Argonaut Shopping Center and Chris Weitsman for $10 million.

"We're blaming Safeway management for not informing its employees of safety rules and for creating a dangerous condition and not doing anything about it," Hilton said.

Hilton said the Argonaut Shopping Center did not do a good job in posting signs and that Weitsman endangered Pan's life. "We're suing for assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress and premises liability," he said. The $10 million is for punitive damages, pain and suffering, and medical bills, he said.

Safeway manager Marc Oppenheim described Weitsman as a "challenged employee." He said that Weitsman occasionally makes mistakes but was not on the clock at the time of the accident. "He was not punched in," Oppeheim said. "We didn't do it. He did it. It's his family's concern, not Safeway's."

Kathy Weitsman, Chris' mother, arrived on the scene shortly after the collision. "It was an unfortunate accident," she said. "It's certainly not one of those situations where there was any malice aforethought." She said that the police officer on the scene didn't see fit to cite her son but that one of the first things Pan mentioned was calling an attorney. Her son has worked at Safeway for five years and since the accident now walks to work. "He's an employee with disabilities," she said. "He has learned his lesson."

Pan said she suffered a stroke three years ago and part of her therapy was to take short walks. Since the collision with Weitsman, she said she has become dependent on her husband and must now use a cane. "I'm still in recovery," she said. "The soft tissue is damaged. This accident has hurt my life, so why should I swallow my pain?"

Pan said that senior citizens and the disabled often frequent the Argonaut Shopping Center and that skaters such as Weitsman are a hazard. "His actions are not acceptable," she said.

Pan left for Shanghai on Aug. 29 for herbal treatments for her stroke and for injuries from the collision, her husband, Cheh Pan, said. She is expected to return in December.

Kathy Weitsman said she had not yet been notified officially about the lawsuit. "To sue someone over this is really disturbing to me," she said. "It could have happened to anyone."