Case details
Artist’s stage dive caused stroke, plaintiff claimed
SUMMARY
$4525402
Amount
Verdict-Plaintiff
Result type
Not present
Ruling
KEYWORDS
anxiety, brain, brain injury, cervical disc injury, cognition, depression, impairment, mental, neck, psychological, stroke, whiplash foot
FACTS
On Feb. 11, 2012, plaintiff Jennifer Fraissl, 24, a student, was attending a pre-Grammy concert performance by Skrillex, a DJ and record producer whose real name is Sonny John Moore, at the Belasco Theater, in Los Angeles. At the end of the show, Moore got on his DJ stand and dove off the stage and landed in the crowd, where Fraissl was allegedly standing. Fraissl claimed she suffered to her head and neck, causing a stroke 16 days later. Fraissl sued Moore; Moore’s production company, Lost Boys Touring Inc.; the operators of the theater, Belasco Entertainment Theater Inc. and Belasco Unlimited Corp.; an entertainment and promotions company, Entitled Global LLC; and a security company that handled the event, RPS Protection Services Inc. Entitled Global defaulted and RPS Protection settled out. The matter continued with Fraissl’s negligence claims against the remaining defendants. Fraissl claimed that while she was standing near the front of the crowd, she was standing back away from the stage when Moore began urging the crowd to come closer, making it hard for her to leave or protect herself. She alleged that when the crowd moved closer to the stage, Moore, who was standing on a table, dove into it and struck her on the back of her head and neck. Fraissl claimed that she felt a blow to the back of her head and assumed Moore had kicked her in the head, and Fraissl’s boyfriend, who also attended the show, testified that he saw Moore kick Fraissl in the back of the head. Fraissl alleged that a crowd of people then surged toward the stage, where she was standing, as Moore’s road manager attempted to pull Moore out of the crowd by one of his legs, causing the pop singer to be dragged over her. Plaintiff’s counsel argued that Moore created a dangerous condition when he called the crowd to come closer to the stage because it made it difficult for Fraissl to move amid the crowd and protect herself. Counsel also argued that the singer knew his stage diving led to unpredictable results, such as crowds falling over, people being knocked down, bloody noses, broken arms, and other . Plaintiff’s counsel further argued that Lost Boys Touring and Moore’s road manager contributed to the injury by dragging him over Fraissl during the dive, and by not holding a pre-show security briefing with the Belasco staff to confirm whether Fraissl would stage dive or not. In addition, plaintiff’s counsel argued that the Belasco entities were negligent for overselling the event, not having a security plan, and using improperly licensed security personnel. Moore’s counsel contended that Fraissl was a fan of Moore’s, had seen Moore perform at least three times during the year that preceded the Belasco show, and had saw Moore stage dive and “crowd surf” at each of those previous shows. Counsel also contended that it was Moore’s custom and practice to stage dive and crowd surf at the end of his performances. Counsel further introduced evidence that stage diving and crowd surfing was common in the electronic dance music genre at that time, and identified more than a dozen EDM performers who regularly stage dove and crowd surfed, including many artists whom Fraissl liked and followed, and/or whom had performances that Fraissl attended. Moore’s counsel argued that, based on the past history presented, Fraissl consented to and/or assumed the risk of injury by choosing to position herself at the front of the crowd and that Fraissl was actively participating in the show, as evidenced by the video of Fraissl jumping, raising her hands and smiling before, during, and after Moore stage dove. Counsel also argued that Moore stage dove hundreds of times before the Belasco show without injury to the crowd. In addition, counsel argued that there was an inconsistency between Fraissl’s and other’s eyewitness’s testimony claiming contact versus the video evidence that allegedly showed no contact between Fraissl and Moore. Counsel for Lost Boys Touring contended that its employee, Moore’s road manager, and Moore had an established routine for performances and stage diving and that the road manager acted as he normally did that evening when Moore stage dove. Counsel also contended that there was an established routine for the road manager to meet with the venue and security team prior to Moore’s shows. Belasco’s counsel argued that the Belasco staff was not aware that Moore was going to stage dive, that the Belasco entities had a standard security plan in place, and that there was no evidence that the venue was overcrowded. Counsel further argued that the Belasco entities were not responsible for ticketing the event. The defense’s biomechanical engineering expert testified that the video of the concert showed that Moore did not make contact with Fraissl, and showed Fraissl smiling before and after the stage dive., Fraissl alleged that she suffered blunt force trauma to her head and neck at the concert, causing a whiplash injury that resulted in a stroke 16 days later. Fraissl claimed that 18 hours after the concert, she texted her boyfriend to complain that she had terrible whiplash from getting kicked in the head. Sixteen days later, on Feb. 27, 2012, she suffered a right pontine stroke, also known as pons stroke, a type of ischemic stroke in the pons part of the brain stem, due to a dissection of her left vertebral artery. As a result, she suffers from left-sided hemiparesis, which results in her dragging her left foot when she walks and having limited use of her left hand. Fraissl claimed that her hemiparesis is permanent and that she also suffers from depression and anxiety as a result of her condition. She claimed that she was a student about to graduate from the University of California, Irvine, with a degree in anthropology at the time of the incident and that she wanted to become a veterinarian, but that she was unable to finish her college studies due to her stroke. In 2017, Fraissl began working part-time for an online job service, which was her only work history. She also took a biology class at community college and obtained a grade of an “A,” but she claimed that her anxiety prevented her from taking more classes. The plaintiff’s medical experts opined that trauma from the concert show caused Fraissl’s dissection and stroke. They testified that Fraissl’s symptoms of whiplash is a well-known cause of vertebral artery dissection and that spontaneous dissections and strokes are rare for 24-year-olds to suffer. They also testified that the medical literature established the median time between a dissection and a stroke is two weeks, which placed Fraissl in the classic time frame for a stroke due to a dissection. The experts further testified that the primary sign of a vertebral artery dissection is neck pain, and opined that Fraissl likely suffered multiple transient ischemic attacks — episodes of dizziness, headaches and confusion — in the intervening two weeks, which are classic signs of an impending stroke caused by a vertebral artery dissection. The plaintiff’s treating doctors opined that Fraissl’s hemiparesis is permanent. The plaintiff’s treating neuropsychologist also opined that Fraissl suffers from a mild neurocognitive disorder with sustained attention and focus, as well as suffers from emotional incontinence, also known as pseudobulbar affect, which is a condition that’s characterized by episodes of sudden, uncontrollable and inappropriate laughing or crying. She also agreed that Fraissl suffers from hemiparesis, depression, and mild anxiety. Fraissl sought recovery of past and future medical costs, past and future loss of earnings, and damages for her past and future pain and suffering. Plaintiff’s counsel presented a life care plan of approximately $2.2 million. Defense counsel argued that Fraissl’s stroke was not caused by the concert. Counsel noted that Fraissl did not seek medical attention after the show, nor at any time in the next two weeks, for any or symptoms relating to head and/or neck pain. However, counsel noted that Fraissl did seek medical attention for coughing and that during that medical visit, Fraissl’s head and neck were reported to be atraumatic and normal. The defense’s medical experts testified that 80 percent of cervical artery dissections are spontaneous and that Fraissl had numerous risk factors for a spontaneous dissection, such as paroxysmal coughing due to an upper respiratory infection, recent alcohol consumption, fibromuscular dysplasia, vomiting, and self-cracking of her neck. In regard to the psychological claims, defense counsel argued that Fraissl’s alleged depression and anxiety were merely mild, and noted that Fraissl is still able to travel extensively around the country after her stroke. Counsel also argued that Fraissl’s psychological testing showed no neurocognitive disorder. In addition, defense counsel challenged the scope and severity of Fraissl’s claims of an ongoing injury, and disputed Fraissl’s alleged medical expenses, loss of earning capacity, and pain and suffering. Specifically, counsel argued that Fraissl suffered no wage loss at all, and suggested a life care plan of approximately $600,000.
COURT
Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA
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INJURIES:
- anxiety
- brain
- brain damage
- brain injury
- cognition
- depression
- epidural
- extradural hematoma
- face
- facial bone
- fracture
- head
- headaches
- hearing
- impairment
- insomnia
- loss of
- mental
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- scapula
- sensory
- shoulder
- skull
- speech
- subdural hematoma
- tinnitus
- traumatic brain injury
- vision
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