One evening, Ed and Jane went to a baseball game and while sitting in the left f

Question

One evening, Ed and Jane went to a baseball game and while sitting in the left field bleachers, a fly ball was hit hard in their direction. As Ed was about to catch the ball, a couple of things happened: 1) Ed slipped on a hot dog bun that Jane had tossed on the floor below his seat (Ed knew that that the hot dog bun was there but he figured no big deal and did not perceive the bun as a danger). 2) A stadium light blew out as the ball was in the air and this caused Ed to lose track of the ball. Ed’s slip on the hot dog bun and the light going out caused the ball to fly into Ed’s face, causing him a head injury.

While Ed was being taken by ambulance to the hospital, the ambulance driver violated a state regulation that prohibited crossing double yellow lines on the highway. When the ambulance driver crossed the yellow line, a deer jumped out in the road, causing the ambulance driver to swerve and come to rest in a field next to a rock quarry owned by Company Z.

As the ambulance came to a stop, a planned dynamite explosion at the quarry caused a rock to fly through the ambulance window and hit Ed in the leg, breaking his leg. Ed sues: 1) Jane 2) the owner of the stadium 3) the owner of the baseball team whose player hit the ball 4) the ambulance company and 5) Company Z, the owner of the rock quarry. What will Ed argue? What will each of the defendants argue? How will the court rule on this case? Provide justification for your decision.

Explanation / Answer

Ed argument: Ed slipped on the hot dog bun below his seat which was thrown by Jane. The slipping caused him to be hit by the ball which led to head injury. If Jane had thrown the hot dog bun in the dustbin then Ed would not have slipped and would not have come in the line of the flying ball.

Jane argument: The hot dog bun was thrown with Ed’s knowledge much before the flying ball incident so the Jane had no intention or premonition that hot dog bun would cause the accident. Since Ed was already aware of the exact location of the hot dog bun, he should have tried to catch the ball keeping the hot dog bun in mind to avoid any potential accident due to it. After Ed is aware of location of bun, Jane is not responsible for any accident due to it as precautionary measure could have been planned in advance. There was no intention to cause harm or damage while throwing the bun and the bun throwing act was not done secretly so Jane cannot be held responsible for Ed’s accident because Ed was well aware of the situation and the consequences.

2. Ed sues the owner of the stadium:

Ed argument: As Ed was about to catch the ball, the lights of the stadium went off which caused him to lose sight of the ball completely. As Ed slipped on the hot dog, he was unable to see the movement of the ball due to lights going off. This caused the accident and head injury of Ed. If the lights were on, even after slipping on hot dog bun, Ed would have been able to see the ball direction and save himself accordingly. The stadium owner is responsible to provide proper lighting for the entire audience and any harm caused due to lack of lighting should be compensated by the owner.

Stadium owner argument: The lights are not guaranteed for 24 hours and the owner cannot be held responsible for any risks due to unprecedented circumstances. Since there is no proof that lights were switched off intentionally to cause harm to Ed, owner cannot be forced to compensate for damages. Catching the ball without any precautionary measures was Ed’s decision and he should be aware of all the risks related to the game. Any audience member who enters the stadium is well aware of the risk situations that can occur during the game. A protective net is also provided for front row audience. Any audience at the back is taking the calculated risk and stadium cannot be held responsible for ball related accidents.

3.Ed sues the owner of the baseball team whose player hit the ball:

Ed argument: the head injury was caused by the ball hit by the player. The owner of the baseball team should be responsible for any action taken by their baseball players during a match. So if there has been any accident by a baseball player hitting the ball in a match, the team owner should take responsibility for it.

Baseball team owner argument: Any unintentional harm caused by player does not come under the ownership of the team. When audience come for a match, it is believed that they are well aware of all risks situations that may occur and they are solely responsible for the outcome for the same. Even the catch and slipping on the bun cannot be prevented by the baseball player or the team so they are not responsible for the accident

4.Ed sues the ambulance company:

Ed argument: Ambulance driver violated a state regulation that prohibited crossing double yellow lines on the highway. If he had not crossed the lines, a dear would not have come in the way and they would not have been target of rock flying due to dynamite explosion in the rock quarry. The accident in company Z could have been avoided if driver had taken correct route and not violated state regulations which are made to avoid such issues. The ambulance company is responsible for their employees so they should also compensate the damages.

The ambulance company argument: The driver has not caused the explosion which led to the rock flying and breaking of Ed’s leg. The ambulance driver could not have anticipated the deer and the explosions of rock quarry so any accident caused due to them cannot be deemed as the driver or the ambulance company’s responsibility. It was a coincidence that the field where the driver rested was next to a quarry and the accident happened.

5.Ed sues the Company Z, the owner of the rock quarry:

Ed argument: Ed’s leg broke due to a rock flying and hitting him. Since the rock movement was caused by the explosion in the quarry, the owner should be held responsible for the damages.

Argument by the owner of the Company Z: The explosions at the rock quarry are planned and occur at fixed time. The ambulance had entered the area without any warning or intimation so the explosion could not be stopped. Since the company Z was unaware of movement of ambulance and Ed, the explosions could not be avoided to prevent Ed’s accident so Company Z cannot be held responsible for any damages.

After all the argument s, the Court will rule that:

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