Should lady be allowed to sue Red Sox?

[Bennojd]

Woman Can't Sue Red Sox Over Being Hit by Foul Ball
Court Says Team Had 'No Duty' to Warn Costa Over Possible Danger

BOSTON (June 10) -- A woman who was seriously injured by a foul ball at Fenway Park has no grounds to sue because she assumed a risk by attending the baseball game, a state appeals court ruled.

The Red Sox "had no duty to warn the plaintiff of the obvious danger of a foul ball being hit into the stands," the court said Wednesday in blocking Jane Costa's personal injury lawsuit from going to trial.

The three-member panel said that even someone with scant knowledge of baseball should realize that "a central feature of the game is that batters will forcefully hit balls that may go astray from their intended direction."

Costa, who was injured in 1998, sued the team for $486,909 in lost wages and medical expenses. She had been sitting about 20 rows behind the Red Sox dugout when Boston's Darren Lewis hit the foul ball.

Costa had to undergo reconstructive surgery that installed eight plates in her face, said her lawyer, James R. Burke.

According to court documents filed by Burke, an expert calculated that the ball was traveling about 90 mph when it struck Costa about 141 feet from home plate.

"I'm more than angry. I was in critical condition," Costa told The Boston Globe. She said Red Sox management and players are "bickering over millions and millions of dollars to hit a ball, and when one of their fans get hurt, they don't care."

According to Red Sox officials, three to four dozen patrons each season are injured by foul balls.


06/10/04 08:46 EDT

Copyright 2004 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

[Bennojd]

It's my opinion that this lady got a raw deal!

The Red Sox (and all other MLB teams) should be liable for injuries resulting from their actions, whether intentional or not!

I say that she should be able to sue the team for medical expenses and also pain and suffering especially when considering how bad she was hurt.

Bennojd

[govjim]

While I sympathize for the woman, I gotta agree with the decision. You don't sue a car manufacturer when you are injured in a car accident (unless it's a defect) because you assume a risk and hopefully have insurance to cover an accident. And if you don't have insurance, you better realize the risk you're taking. Also, I feel this would just open things up for more silly lawsuits.
However, I do wonder how much the Sox spent on lawyers vs. the money it would have cost to help her out.

[savage1]

Much as I feel badly for the lady, I have to side with the court on this one.
There is no neglect here-what happens if someone gets hit with a hockey puck that goes into the stands? Has this happened and/or has anyone collected?
If the court ruled in her favor, then what?
Perhaps a fan will try to sue because of mental anguish:
Lets say Red Sox are ahead 3-0 going into the top of the ninth inning against Yankees.
Lets say bases are loaded with two outs and Giambi hits a grand slam homer off Foulke to win the game 4-3.
Now-lets say lady is a real diehard and loses sleep for 3 days, can't go to work and gets fired from her job because of the loss.
Should she be able to sue Red Sox or Foulke because he/they let her down causing her mental anguish and then the loss of her job?
A stretch perhaps, but if court ruled in lady's favor, it would be opening up a huge can of worms and more possible lawsuits, and if these suits were successful, it would mean much higher ticket prices for one thing to pay off these suits(assuming team insurance didn't pay for it).
Nope-the slim possibility of getting hit by a ball goes with the territory, and since it was not deliberate in this case, I see no liability for the team.

[bgh2003]

Benno, you're wrong.

Essentially, a tort is intentional or negligent wrongul act that causes an injury. A negligence suit requires both a duty imposed by law, and a breach of that duty by the wrongdoer. Because baseball players do not intentionally hit foul balls, negligence would have to be the gist of an action against the Red Sox.

What is the duty of the Red Sox in this case? To warn patrons of the dangers of foul balls entering the stands? Surely the ballclub satisfied that obligation, even though the appellate court apparently ruled that it didn't need to do so. Every stadium in which I have attended a baseball game has signs posted in conspicuous locations, warning fans to be alert for foul balls. Every ticket for a baseball game I have attended has, in fine print on the reverse side, warnings about the possibility of foul balls being hit into the stands. This woman, actually or constructively, was on notice when she took her seat that foul balls presented a hazard of which she should be aware. (As an aside, do you need to be warned in order to realize that, unless you're sitting directly behind home plate, nothing separates you from the balls being batted and hurled around the field?)

About 10 or 15 years ago, while he was with the Indians, Albert Belle threw a baseball into the chest of a fan who was heckling him for his recent entry into alcohol rehab. That is intentional conduct outside the scope of the game, and Belle personally would have been liable for injuries and damages suffered by the fan.

This is different. Perhaps the Red Sox might have a moral obligation, if not a practical, business-savvy one, to take care of the medical expenses of a paying customer who gets nailed by a foul ball. But it wouldn't be a legal obligation, and both the fan and her lawyer should have known better.

[wayne1218]

I agree with the others that posted saying you can't allow her to win. It would lead to HUGE problems if you open the flood gates.

[savage1]

BGH-Very well put!

[savage1]

Here is the other side of the coin:
Lets say a player wants to sue the team over negligence.
Perhaps in the instance I cited above when Giambi hits a homerun(lets say into the green monster seats) off Foulke causing his ERA to rise and the Sox the game.
Well, then perhaps Foulke can turn around and sue the Sox stating that if the wall had been 10 feet further back, the ball would have been caught and he would have won the game and ERA not risen.
Lets say after that his season goes downhill;perhaps he could say that the closeness of the wall for that one game wrecked his season and then sue the Sox accordingly for negligence. :D

[MemphisMafia]

1951 or 53 ? :

A game in Philly is in the 3rd inning and Richie Ashburn comes to bat (think he won the BA title that year around .350 ?) he hits a foul ball that strikes an older lady in the head also ( 78 years old ) . While he has a extended at bat they are loading her on a gurnny and as they enter the tunnel just above her seats , he hits another foul ball and low and behold hits the same exact lady in the head again (she was unconscious at the time) .

Does she sue ?

And who ?

Does she win , if she sues ?

I know and I wont tell you untill someone gets warm , and Cecil Feilder knows about sliding into second base with hotdogs in his pants also ( ) The Tigers fined him 2000.00 for that little oddity .

Book on " Baseball Oddities " is my source of info , and there are some very funny stories in it ........ trust-me !

G.L.

***MMM***

:cool: :cool: :cool:

[Umberto]

Memphis,
Did Richie Ashburn hit his mother with two foul balls? If not him, then someone did.

[Bennojd]

I'm being swayed..........

to the side that says she shouldn't be able to sue.
Great points have been brought up on this issue and I guess liability has to end somewhere.

However, my heart (and morals) tell me that the Red Sox should have helped her out despite the fact that they were not legally obligated to do so.

Thanks to all those that gave their input!

Sincerely,
Bennojd

[ItsBillBelichick]

Re: 1951 or 53 ? :

Originally posted by MemphisMafia
A game in Philly is in the 3rd inning and Richie Ashburn comes to bat (think he won the BA title that year around .350 ?) he hits a foul ball that strikes an older lady in the head also ( 78 years old ) . While he has a extended at bat they are loading her on a gurnny and as they enter the tunnel just above her seats , he hits another foul ball and low and behold hits the same exact lady in the head again (she was unconscious at the time) .

Does she sue ?

And who ?

Does she win , if she sues ?

I know and I wont tell you untill someone gets warm , and Cecil Feilder knows about sliding into second base with hotdogs in his pants also ( ) The Tigers fined him 2000.00 for that little oddity .



»
Book on " Baseball Oddities " is my source of info , and there are some very funny stories in it ........ trust-me !

G.L.

***MMM***

:cool: :cool: :cool:

» August 17, 1957: Richie Ashburn, known for his ability to foul pitches off, hits spectator Alice Roth twice in the same at bat. The first one breaks her nose, and the second one hits her while she is being removed from her seat on a stretcher. Ironically, she is the wife of Earl Roth, the sports editor of the Philadelphia Bulletin. The Phils win 3-1 over New York.

I had to do a bit of research but it was fun and I learned a lot. Still have not found out the out come but getting warmer?

[MemphisMafia]

I Am Simply Amazed :

I didnt think anyone would come close to this one , shows you what I know .

I am impressed to say the least , you should win a brass-ring !

Very .... , very good job !

Your not only warm , your stinkin HOT !

***MMM***

[melonge]

Hockey Injury

In regards to someone earlier asking what would happen if a puck went into the stands. A few years ago, at I believe a Columbus Blue Jackets, but easily could be wrong, a young girl was hit in the head w/a puck that went over the glass some 20 or so rows back and died from brain trauma. Not sure who would of won, as I believe the team gave her parents 1 million or something of the sort, as a 'gift', however that is a lot different than baseball, where it's expected and getting killed also.

[Hillside123]

Read the back of the ticket !!!

On the bakc of the ticket, it should clearl state something to the affect that the team is NOT responible for injuries resulting from bats or balls flying into the stands. Its not the fault of the Redsox that the woman can't read. By purchasing the ticket AND attending the game, she agrees to the terms and condition set forth by the club.