Coomer The Hot Dog Douche Is At It Again!
 

This guy is the biggest douche in Overland Park... and that's saying something!

http://news.yahoo.com/fan-injured-ho...155248090.html

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — If it had been a foul ball or broken bat that struck John Coomer in the eye as he watched a Kansas City Royals game, it's unlikely the courts would have forced the team to pay for the surgeries and suffering he's endured.

But because it was a hot dog thrown by the team mascot — behind the back, no less — he just may have a case.

The Missouri Supreme Court is weighing whether the "baseball rule" — a legal standard that protects teams from being sued over fan injuries caused by events on the field, court or rink — should also apply to injuries caused by mascots or the other personnel that teams employ to engage fans.

Because the case could set a legal precedent, it could change how teams in other cities and sports approach interacting with fans at their games.

Coomer, of Overland Park, Kan., says he was injured at a September 2009 Royals game when the team's lion mascot, Sluggerrr, threw a 4-ounce, foil-wrapped wiener into the stands that struck his eye. He had to have two surgeries — one to repair a detached retina and the other to remove a cataract that developed and implant an artificial lens. Coomer's vision is worse now than before he was hurt and he has paid roughly $4,800 in medical costs, said his attorney, Robert Tormohlen.

Coomer, 53, declined to discuss the case. His lawsuit seeks an award of "over $20,000" from the team, but the actual amount he is seeking is likely much greater. Tormohlen declined to discuss the actual amount.

The Jackson County jurors who first heard the case two years ago sided with the Royals, saying Coomer was completely at fault for his injury because he wasn't aware of what was going on around him. An appeals court overturned that decision in January, however, ruling that while being struck by a baseball is an inherent risk fans assume at games, being hit with a hotdog isn't.

The state Supreme Court heard oral arguments last month, but didn't indicate when it might issue its ruling.

Few cases had addressed the level of legal duty, or obligation, a mascot owes to fans, so Coomer's case is being closely watched by teams throughout the country, said Tormohlen.

"If a jury finds that the activity at issue is an inherent and unavoidable risk, the Royals owe no duty to their spectators," Tormohlen said. "No case has extended the no-duty rule to the activities of a mascot."

The Royals, whose spokesman declined to comment on the case while it is pending, have argued that the hotdog toss has been a popular fan attraction at Kauffman Stadium since 2000 and is as much part of the game experience as strikeouts and home runs.

From mascot races and T-shirt cannons to free Wi-Fi and stadium sushi stands, teams have been doing everything they can to convince fans that the live experience is worth the high ticket and concession prices and is better than watching games on television.

"You have this competition with teams engaged in pushing the envelope trying to make the experience at the event better than what you can experience at home," said Jordan Kobritz, a professor in the Sports Management Department at SUNY Cortland. "You also have the fan mentality in which risk today is more tolerable than it's been in our history."

A ruling in Coomer's favor, or one that at least assigns partial blame to the mascot, could force teams to rethink their promotions, or at least take additional measures to keep spectators safe, Kobritz said.

Bob Jarvis, a sports law professor at Nova Southeastern University in Florida, said a 1997 California case set an important precedent when a state appeals court ruled that mascots are not an essential part of a baseball game. In that case, a minor league baseball team's dinosaur brushed against a fan, distracting him right before he was struck by a ball that broke several bones in his face. The court said mascot antics aren't essential or integral to the playing of a game.

Furthermore, not all courts have treated the baseball rule as sacrosanct. Earlier this year, the Idaho Supreme Court allowed a fan who lost an eye to a foul ball at a minor league baseball game to proceed with his lawsuit against the team. The court said that since baseball fan injuries are so rare in Idaho, there didn't seem to be a compelling reason for the court to step in.

In the Kansas City case, a ruling in the Royals' favor would indicate that mascots are, indeed, an essential part of the game experience, Jarvis said. If that happens, the Kansas City case would likely supplant Lowe's as the one attorneys look at when deciding whether to file a lawsuit on behalf of an injured fan.

"If you could get a court to go the other way and say in-game entertainment is a natural part of playing baseball in the U.S. in the 21st century, that would be a tremendous precedent that could cut off future lawsuits," Jarvis said.

Oh my.

I suppose that I'm in the minority for thinking that this case isn't too terrible? If he was suing for "emotional damage" or something, that would be one thing, but the dude did literally have to have surgery, and may have permanent damage to his vision. As long as he's not asking for millions, I don't judge him too harshly.

If this is accurate, he absolutely has a good case. I'd be pissed if this happened to me.

I don't "see" this as a problem. If I had my eyesight damaged by the corner of a hotdog foil... I'd also sue. And tweet about it, incessantly like a bitch.

Dude just give up bro, you were hit by a hot dog. Let it go

agreed

Damaged vision? Let it go? Are you nuts! I would be going after more than just a few bucks. My bottom would be like 500k.

Royals radar gun had it clocked at 220 mph.

I'd tell the Royals to pay for my eye surgery, and give me season tickets for life, and we're good. Much better use of money than paying dirtbag lawyers.

You sir, should take responsibility for your own actions. If you were hit by a foul ball, still want Royals to pay for it? I bet you are the kind of guy that when you are at your friends house, you fall down his stairs, injuring yourself, and you expect him to pay for it. The kind of guy that has an acorn fall off of your neighbors tree, and you send a invoice to your neighbor for clean up. The kind of guy that slams into the back of a caravan full of illegal immigrants, injures all of them, but yells at them for your damage because they don't have insurance.

I don't see this as unreasonable at all. He didn't just get hit by a hot dog and is whining like a little bithc. It detached his retina and he needed two surgeries and an implant. 20K or more is nothing. Probably just covers his medical bills, legal bills, and something for the permanent loss of vision. Sucks that it may cause all sporting events to forego the practice of promotional projectiles but doesn't change the fact that he's entitled to remedies.

Calm down, dude. There's a difference between getting hit by a foul ball (which you're watching for and expecting) and being hit in the eye by a metal-wrapped hot dog (which ****ing nobody should expect).

:thumb:

"Sluggerrr, threw a 4-ounce, foil-wrapped wiener into the stands"

That's only 1oz less than a baseball. Anyone who's been desperate enough to eat one knows that those dogs wrapped in foil are most certainly weapons.

No not really, in fact, one is larger and traveling at a greater rate of speed. Pay attention, you are at a sporting event. End of story.

How could a hotdog do that kind of damage-thrown behind the back no less? And how in the world did this idiot not know what was going on. Kids and fans clamour for free stuff. I wonder how much damage someone could do to him with a fist for being a dumbass?

"That bitch wouldn't have gotten raped if she had paid attention and didn't wear that sexy ass dress..." [/bwillie]

I can't tell if this is serious or not. I sure hope not.

he just wasn't keeping an eye out for hot dogs.
sec

Why is the guy a douche?

There is a lesson here- watch for flying weiners at all times-or you might lose an eye.

I am simply floored by all of you on this guys side. Society has certainly taken a turn for the worst. Nobody takes personal accountability for anything nowadays. They always think it's someone elses fault. I mean it doesn't matter what it is, a tornado could come, blow down your house, you'd blame the Weather Channel and sue them.

I think the only reason the Royals won the first trial was that their lawyers argued that anybody that would go to watch the Royals in September 2009 had to be a perfect idiot unless Zach Greinke was pitching.

Once the Royals got the boxscore into evidence over the strenuous objections of Coomer's lawyer, the jury made up its mind that Coomer had it coming.

I bet you never put your eyes down to put down your beer or look at your program. I bet during a gimmick promotion, you're never looking at the scoreboard or looking around to see what's going on in the Left Field section. I'm sure you never read a program or check your phone for messages. I'm sure you never turn to your friend or turn behind you to chat with somebody else.

Launching stuff into the stands is an unnecessary risk that has NOTHING to do with the game. The Royals assumed that risk when they chose to do it, and I'm sure their insurance has made them well aware of that. It's the Royals, not the fan, that needs to take personal responsibility. It's not like the guy was doing anything stupid. It sounds like he was just sitting there.

LMAO you're an idiot

The Royals should have settled this quickly and quietly. Verify the injury and surgery stuff and then pay the guy's medical bills. :shrug:

never should have made it this far imo

Yep.

If the state doesn't protect them from flying hot dogs they are incapable of defending themselves because of their uncoordination and pussification.

They then immediately run sobbing to the nearest lawyer.

"This is almost as bad as being forced to play dodgeball!!!"

Your examples are totally ridiculous.

You're comparing cleaning up acorns to a guy getting thousands of dollars in surgeries.

And then in your second example, you talk about a guy who does something stupid then blames somebody else.

Now in this example, you're talking about natural events.

The Kansas City Royals are a business. When you are a business, you take on risks and liability, and you insure against it. As the property owner, they have an obligation to make sure that it's safe. There is a difference between a guy sprinting through Target and tripping and falling because of his own stupidity, and a guy casually walking through Target when he trips on a wet spot somebody forgot to clean up. This guy was minding his own business, the Royals engaged in an activity they knew was risky and avoidable, and the guy got injured.

:facepalm:

So that's what you should do? Pay for things you aren't responsible for. That sure opens the flood gates for ppl. Hey, I'll just go to a Royals game, get some free stuff. Hey my leg hurts, I'll go fall down someones stairs to get them to pay for my shit. I'm sure the Royals offered to give him something, autographed baseball, some free tickets. This guy was like, hell no, I'm going to drag this thing thru the mud.

Good lord. Hot dogs. HOT DOGS. Giving away hot dogs is dangerous? By going to a baseball game you assume the risk of projectiles. You assume it. And, it doesn't matter if his damages are $1 for ketchup on his shirt, or 9.7M for an injury. That should have no bearing over the liability of the situation. It has to do with a breach of duty.

Next time I catch one of sluggers hot dogs and the ketchup gets loose due to the small impact and onto my shirt. I'm going to sue the Royals for $19.95 for my t-shirt. I will not give up. I will prevail. They must pay for my stained t-shirt.

I don't think you have any concept of how the legal system works. The Royals can't be sued because an idiot falls down the stairs, unless there was something that should have been fixed and wasn't.

And the idea that a free autographed baseball pays for thousands of dollars in surgeries and lifetime seeing impairment is a complete laugher.

It doesn't open the floodgates for anything, except for fans who get hit in the eye with projectile objects from a stadium employee being given ability to pay their medical bills.

$19.95 for a t-shirt that the team would likely replace with equal value merchandise vs. thousands of dollars in medical procedures

You can replace a t-shirt. You think the Royals are going to donate eyes to this guy? Seriously.

And you would be the first person probably that ever worried about going to the game and getting hit in the eye with a hot dog. The games I've been to, I've seen tacos dropped on very slow parachutes. I've seen t-shirt cannons that they launch upward in the air. The fact that there was any risk of injury at all puts the blame on the Royals for such a poorly planned promotion.

You go to a baseball game knowing that there is a lot going on, and that it isn't the same as sitting in your Lazyboy at home.

When Slugger starts tossing hotdogs, it's not a ****ing ambush. It's pretty obvious what is happening. Had someone sprinted up behind this guy, tapped him on the shoulder, and drilled him in the face from point blank range when he turned around, that would be one thing. That simply wasn't the case here. An obvious promotion was happening. This guy knew about it. A freak accident happened, but it wasn't caused by negligence on the part of the Royals. It happened because this guy was too dumb to not get hit in the face by a hotdog.

What do you mean it wasn't caused by the negligence of the Royals?

They approved a promotion that clearly had a chance of inflicting serious medical damage on a person.

And you are completely self righteous if you act like you are locked in every time something is being launched. You said it yourself. A million things are going on. You might be laughing at the guy three sections over, or looking at the scoreboard. Or looking at your program. Or putting down your beer. Or calling for the beer guy.

I mean, how old are you? The only people who lock in to the mascots are kids and parents trying to get shit for their kids. Almost everyone I know not in these categories uses intermissions to get food, get a beer, go to the bathroom, or talk to their neighbor. Nor should I feel obligated to pay extra attention to the mascot.

The guy was injured by the direct action of a Royal's employee.

so yea, you get one of your investigator guys to makes sure it's all legit and you pay 20k for the medical bills to make it go away. No court case, no legal precedence, no bad PR.

Now I imagine the Royals will have to pay more than 20k even if they win the case.

Were you a witness to this incident?

IMO, if Slugerr threw the hot dog behind his back into an area where nobody was clamoring for hot dogs, the Royals ought to be liable.

The times I have seen the hot dog throws. I have never seen one get past all of the people trying to catch it.

The fact that this hot dog hit this guy in the eye when he was not looking indicates one or two things that suggest negligence by the mascot. That nobody else around him was trying to catch the hot dog. Or, that the throw's speed and trajectory was not appropriate for the distance of the throw because none of the people who were trying to catch it were able to.

I enjoy going to the Royals games, but there is way too much sensory overload between innings. They have some loud nonsense going on between every inning. I could see how a regular attendee of the games would learn to tune that sh*t out to maintain his sanity.

I understand how the legal system works, I used to work with these types of incidents all the time. I saw cases go to court, the outcomes, worked with attorneys, completed depositions. What I am saying, is there is no breach of duty on the Royals. I'm just saying, the type of people that sue for this kind of shit, also sue for the other stuff I mentioned.

I agree, but it may be the case that the Royals insurer is the one paying the freight and refusing a settlement. I imagine the plaintiff's demand would be reasonable after losing the first verdict, even if there was error in the jury instructions.

Would be interesting to know if Coomer's health insurer has a lien on any recovery for the amount attributable to medical expenses?

I'm only going by the information we have.

but this isn't good for the Royals

If he was injured like the article suggests and his monetary demands are inline when the medical injuries then just PAY it and move on.

legal bills will be more

When you start throwing objects at people, there should be a breach of duty. Should you evaluate the way the hot dog is wrapped? Should you throw it higher in the air? Pretty sure that throwing behind your back is just nonsense.
I get your point if you're talking about a simple slip and fall where somebody is trying to milk the system for a made up injury. This guy sounds like he has legit medical injury that he had to pay for.

What if this was a 5 year old kid with no coordination? A baseball team shouldn't do this kind of promotion if they haven't thought through the risks. They absolutely had a breach of duty the instant they approved of this promotion.

Yeah, exactly.

Omg. Get a grip. I would never try and hurt a friends wallet with bullshit. The Royals are not this guys buddy. He is permanently damaged and should get all he can for his trouble. Life is alog easier when you have money, just ask anyone who doesn't have any.

Ban hot dogs

I'm with you.

The guy's eye got pretty dicked up. And he's not going after millions in non-economic damages; he's looking to get his bills paid.

Seriously, a mascot whipping a hot dog hard enough to detach a friggen retina is probably not something he ought be doing. I fail to see how flinging a hot dog hard enough to do legitimate damage, while doing so in a generally 'out of control' manner, is exercising sufficient due care.

Were the mascot throwing a baseball rather than a hot dog, would the outcry against this guy be the same? No, I highly doubt it. But the fact that 'c'mon, the guy got hit by a hot dog' gives the outraged a rallying cry makes his demands seem unreasonable.

But the end result is the same - the mascot threw a projectile with enough force (and with enough mass) and in a careless enough fashion to hit a bystander in the eye and detach his retina. That's absolutely a breach of duty by the Royals.

This seems pretty reasonable to me.

Exactly? So you went to the game with Saul Good that night and personally witnessed what happened?

Did you go out for dinner and drinks after the game?

GET RICH OR DIE TRYING! That's what my man Fifty said!

So maybe the parent shouldn't bring a 5 year old to a baseball game that doesn't have the maturity to understand what is going around them. Under this argument, children shouldn't be allowed at a baseball game at all. I can't say I disagree with that, because, they could easily get hit by a bat, foul ball, etc. So, if a child was sitting there, was hit by a foul ball, what would you think? Like others have said, when slugger is doing the promotion, it's OBVIOUS to what is going on. What do you go to baseball game for? To read your iPad, you are a spectator, you are looking at what is going on on the field and around you as it relates to the baseball game. You aren't sitting in starbucks reading a book and someone chucks a latte at your grill.

No, it is NOT obvious what is going on. I have never seen a promotion where I was afraid of getting hurt. NEVER. You know why? Because if you are doing a promotion that gets people hurt, you shouldn't be doing it. Period.

I brought up the five year old because the argument that everybody should be paying attention to the mascot is ridiculous. The speed that this hot dog had to have hit this guy's eye at was obviously fast enough that you question if a kid would have caught it either. That's dangerous.

Every time I see t-shirt cannons they got shot UP in the air. Throwing anything at eye level is just plain stupid. The Royals are absolutely on the hook here. They approved a promotion where somebody could get hurt. They took no care to wrap the hot dog up protectively. And you have a mascot who's obviously throwing it too hard and, worse, is carelessly throwing it behind his back instead of aiming for someone.

Nexr time slugger gets near me im just running away. Just gonna dive on the ground. You aint injuring me you maniacal lion.

HOW YOUR TEAMS MASCOT IS PLOTTING TO KILL YOU! ON THE NEXT 60 MINUTES. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO PROTECT YOUR FAMILY FROM HOT DOGS.

Yeah. You have to be at the game to know what a hot dog toss is like. Maybe this one used hot dogs made of steel being thrown by Randy Johnson...or maybe some guy got hit in the face by a hot dog because he sucks at life.

It CLEARLY had a chance of inflicting SERIOUS MEDICAL DAMAGE? Really? Surely, then, people must have been running away screaming, "NOOOO! I didn't sign up for this!" while this was going on, then. I mean, throwing lit M-80s into the crowd could clearly cause serious medical damage. Firing water balloons full of boiling grease from the grease traps at fans would clearly cause serious medical damage. If lobbing hotdogs to clamoring fans is CLEARLY going to cause SERIOUS MEDICAL DAMAGE, then surely this guy would have been hit from behind while trying to flee the dangerous situation rather than hit in the eye.

You know how you can tell when someone has run out of useful things to say?

They start using All-Caps in their straw-men. Simply making illogical reaches doesn't work any more - it's time to start doing so emphatically.

Saul and BWillie have certainly acquitted themselves nicely thus far.

Carry on, gents. You're doing great.

Yeah. The royals just need to pay his medical expenses and maybe free tickets and it would go away. The guy seems to only be going after the damage. Not retirement.

And it was probably a lottery shot to cause that damage but it happened.

I'd have to let this one slide just so I wouldnt be known as the guy that got his eye poked out by a weiner.

LMAO

This event is like the climax scene from Ghostbusters where the guy can't clear his mind, so he thinks of the most harmless thing possible...the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. He might as well have imagined a big fuzzy costumed character tossing hot dogs to fans at a baseball game.

To say that the Royals should have anticipated someone getting injured is preposterous. Fans at a professional sporting event should be expected to have a minimum amount of awareness of what is going on around them. If you don't notice that everyone around you is clamoring for hot dogs being tossed by the giant Lion mascot standing 20 feet away from you...that's on you.

...

dammit, now I want a hot dog and the closest QT is in Dallas. Thanks slugger. asshole.

:LOL:

Just call Slugger. He can fire a hot dog in your direction at 2,200 feet per second.

Clean up on Isle 3

it is someone elses fault, you don't expect flying ****ing hot dogs at a baseball game. The guy isn't looking to get rich here, and if anyone should be accountable, it is the mascot.

it is very unfortunate.

LMAOLMAOLMAOLMAOLMAOLMAOLMAOLMAO

This thread is great, you guys are really on a roll. Is it cause it is friday?

Have you ever been to a baseball game? Teams do promotions like this all the time. If you don't expect it, the announcement should clue you in...so should the guy in a giant Lion costume preparing to toss hotdogs.

Inter continental ballistic hotdog? I'm putting on my safety goggles.

Yes, yes I have, even a few Royals games. I even saw Steve Busby pitch.

At the drag races, they often shoot T-Shirts to the crowd out of a giant cannon thing, and I just can't imagine someone not being aware of it. However, I bet there are people looking at something else at the time, just like this guy obviously was.

I think the bogie here is that he is not trying to get rich, just basically get his medical bills covered.

He's asking for "over 20k", the exact amount isn't specified.

Did it clearly have a chance of inflicting serious medical damage? Yes. How do I know this? Because it happened once, therefore, there is a chance.

The mockery you're making of somebody freaking out about a hot dog promotion is exactly my point. People bring baseball gloves and are always alert during an inning for fear of getting hit with a bat or balll. Nobody expects to get hurt during a hot dog promotion, so why do you keep putting this ridiculous idea into people's heads that people should be paying close attention to a hot dog promotion so as not to get hurt? How about not doing the promotion at all -- is that going to change the outcome of the game?

What are some of the Royals' duty of care? How about insuring that hot dogs are wrapped in something that can't hurt anyone? How about instructing the mascot to lob hot dogs? How about instructing your mascot to lob it to someone who's paying attention, instead of carelessly flipping it behind your back?

LMAO

Sluggggrrr is going to need some sympathy lap dances to get his groove back on...

Looks like Saul Good's description of this particular event assumed a lot of facts beyond "what a hot dog toss is like". You proclaimed exactly, as if you adopted it entirely.

Why would there have to be some absolute rule making all incidents liability? Or, the converse rule that all incidents equal no liability?

IMO, it ought to be a matter of fact depending on what happened and the matter of law should not be absolute either way.

Then why did you just say that you don't expect it? You do expect it because you've seen it happen at every Royals game for a decade.

I sympathisize with the guy. I really do. They Royals should pay for his medical bills, but they shouldn't be legally obligated to. There was nothing dangerous about what they did. It was a freak accident that couldn't have been reasonably anticipated, and this guy could have protected himself by doing literally anything to avoid it.

Going to a Major League baseball game is different than going to the library. It's an interactive experience with tens of thousands of people there to be entertained by not only the game itself, but by the fountains, the food, the music, the carousel, the hot dog race, the kiss cam, and...yes...the mascot tossing t-shirts, hotdogs, etc. to the fans. If those activities are so dangerous as to present an obvious threat, reasonable people should not be there in the first place.

What should they wrap a hotdog in? It's already in a ****ing bun. Should it be wrapped inside something softer than a bun? Something less dangerous than white bread?

It isn't "clearly dangerous" just because someone got hurt. It took a freak accident by an idiot to get hurt. It's possible to get hurt by any number of things if you're the person who is both dumb enough and unlucky enough to find yourself hurt in a hotdog toss at a baseball game. The possibility that something could hurt someone isn't enough that a reasonable person should anticipate it happening.

If everybody around was clamoring to catch the hot dog, then why didn't one of them catch it before it hit this guy's eye?

Could it be that he threw it too hard and too low for the people that wanted to catch it to catch it?

It is the Walmart way. That $20,000 will probably restrict them from putting a team on the field and signing any FA's.

I think that incarnation of Slugggrrr has been replaced. He is collecting workman's comp for developing "just can't get enough" on the job.

That's a brand new diagnosis in the latest DSMV.

You'll forgive me if I doubt that a guy clad in a giant lion costume replete with bulging cotton biceps was able to fire a hot dog...behind his back, no less...at such an unreasonably high velocity that a prudent person was unable to defend himself from being struck in the face.

Is there no such thing as "shit happens"? Seriously...does everything have to be somebody's fault?

You really have not explained why you believe that everybody in the area was on notice that hot dogs were being tossed, and that damn near everybody was trying to catch the hot dog, but none among the damn near everybody succeeded in catching the hot dog before it hit this guy's eye.

Because shit happens. That's why.

I've been to enough games to know that they don't jump out from cover and fire wieners at you like the Viet ****ing Cong. They bring it to your attention beforehand that Slugger is tossing hot dogs into the crowd around him. That is enough to be considered reasonable.