Scenario #6: The Shoulder Injury. Teri Castelow, Robin Riley, Marcus Petty ADMS 624 Dr. Beatty

Transcription

1 Scenario #6: The Shoulder Injury Teri Castelow, Robin Riley, Marcus Petty ADMS 624 Dr. Beatty

2 Introduction Jake is an excellent basketball player as a Junior in high school. Scouts from several colleges and universities know of him and he is confident that it would lead to several scholarship offers. Three minutes into the second half of the second game, Jake dove for a ball and hurt his shoulder. He was removed from the game, and five minutes later he told the coach he was ready to go back in. The coach put him in the game, but at the first play Jake grabbed his shoulder, so he was taken out permanently. The team manager iced his shoulder. The next day at practice, Jake told the coach his shoulder was stiff but he was able to practice the full 3 hours. After practice, he told the coach his shoulder hurt, and the coach told him to go home and ice it down. That night, Jake s mother called Coach Sanderson at home. She was very upset and angry. Jake s parents had taken him to the emergency room where the doctor found a tear in the rotator cuff, with the possibility of tendon and ligament damage. Mrs. Grimes told the coach that they are getting a lawyer because our son s scholarship has gone down the drain because of your negligence.

3 Issue Identification The major legal issues presented in Jake s case include the following: 1. Do Mr. and Mrs. Grimes have a case in claiming that Coach Sanderson s negligence contributed to Jake s injury and caused a loss of scholarship because he allowed Jake to play and practice? 2. Should the school be held responsible for the actions of the coach?

4 Significant Law Negligence - Was Coach Sanderson negligent for allowing Jake to play and practice when complaining about a shoulder pain? Negligence is one type of tort, or a civil wrong, that can be corrected by courts by awarding damages to a victim. Negligence occurs when conduct by one person falls below an established or acceptable standard which results in injury to another person.

5 State and Local Law Code of Virginia :2. any teacher employed by a local school board in the Commonwealth shall not be liable for any civil damages for any acts or omissions resulting from the supervision, care or discipline of students when such acts or omissions are within such teacher's scope of employment and are taken in good faith in the course of supervision, care or discipline of students, unless such acts or omissions were the result of gross negligence or willful misconduct.

6 State and Local Law Chesterfield County Code of Ordinances 9.1. the county and all its officers, employees and agents shall retain all immunities from liability available to counties in the Commonwealth of Virginia. No actions or claims shall be instituted against the county unless the claimant shall have complied with all procedural prerequisites to such actions or claims as are contained in the Constitution and general laws of the Commonwealth.

7 Court Cases Messina v. Burden(1984): identified four factors to consider to determine immunity 1. nature of the function the employee performs 2. extent of the governmental interest and involvement 3. degree of control and direction exercised by the government over the employee 4. whether the alleged act involved the exercise of judgment and discretion Lentz v. Morris(1988): A student (Lentz) was injured playing football under the supervision of PE teacher (Morris). Final appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court reasserted the viability of the doctrine of [immunity] and protection of sovereign immunity

8 Court Cases Kahn v. East Side Union High School District(2002) Freshman swimmer, injured her neck during a swim meet. athletes inherit an assumption of risk associated with the sport Coaches do not have the duty to eliminate all risks but have a duty not to increase the risk inherent to learning, practicing and performing the sport.

9 Court Cases Continued Leahy v. School Board of Hernando County(1984) a freshman football player was injured in a non-aggressive agility drill defined the duty of care owed to athletes as: 1. give adequate instruction in the activity 2. supply proper and necessary protective equipment 3. make a reasonable selection or matching 4. provide non-negligent supervision 5. in the event of injury take proper post-injury procedures to protect against aggravation of the injury

10 Final Conclusion We have come to the conclusion that Coach Sanderson did exercise reasonable care and was not negligent. The initial injury occurred during the game. Jake s choice to continue to practice, showing contributory negligence. The school is not liable for the injury because of the standard of sovereign immunity. According Chesterfield County Code of Ordinances the county and all its officers, employees and agents shall retain all immunities from liability available to counties in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Finally, an assumption cannot be made that Jake lost a scholarship due to this injury. As a junior, there is no guarantee that any scholarship would be awarded by some college basketball program.

11 References Beckett v. Clinton Prairie School Corp., No. 12S CV-268, 504 N.E.2d 552 (1987). Chesterfield County Code of Ordinances 9.1. Chesterfield County School Board Policy Code of Virginia Code of Virginia :2. Dragan, E.F. (n.d.). Understanding Liability in School Cases. Kahn v. East Side Union High School Dist., No. HO Cal.Rptr.2d 356 (2002). Kozlowski, James C. (1996). Sports Coach & Physical Activity Instructors: Legal Duties of Care. Parks & Recreation. Leahy v. School Board of Hernando County, 450 So.2d 883 (Fla.App. 1984).

12 References Lentz v. Morris, 372 S.E.2d 608 (1988). Messina v. Burden, 228 Va. 301, , 321 S.E.2d 657, (1984). National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. (2011). Leadership Training Course 504: Legal Issues I Risk Management (3rd ed.). Vacca, R. S., & Bosher, W. C. (2003). Law and Education: Contemporary Issues and Court Decisions (6th ed.). Newark, NJ: LexisNexis Group. Virginia High School League Rules and Regulations 28B-3-1 and