The Supreme Court has seen some landmark cases in its day, but the hot dog injury lawsuit may be the most important case it ever hears.
According to ESPN , John Coomer filed a lawsuit against the Kansas City Royals after their mascot Sluggerrr hit him in the face with a hot dog in 2009. The Royals said that they didn’t owe the fan anything because they were protected by the “baseball rule.”
USA Today notes that the “Baseball Rule” states that fans assume a certain level of risk by attending a game. The rule generally applies to foul balls, but the Supreme Court may soon decide that it protects flying hot dogs as well.
Coomer’s attorney Robert Tormohlen said that the “baseball rule” has been used to protect NHL teams from fans injured by errant hockey pucks, but said that it has never been used to protect a mascot.
Tormohlen said: “If a jury finds that the activity at issue is an inherent and unavoidable risk, the Royals owe no duty to their spectators… No case has extended the no-duty rule to the activities of a mascot.”
If Coomer wins his hot dog injury lawsuit, it would change the way that fans are entertained during sports games. For one, vendors will probably be forbidden from tossing hot dogs to fans. T-shirt cannons could also get the ax, as well as any sort of mascot cake pranks.
Coomer, who was injured in 2009, said that his vision has gotten worse since the hot dog incident. He has reportedly paid about $4,800 in medical costs due to the injury. Coomer is suing for monetary damages, but it is unclear how much he is asking for.
