Seventh-Inning Stretch · Heads Up!
I Thought Reserved Meant Protected
Hudson v. Kansas City Baseball Club, Inc. (1942)
Charge: Negligence - older nearsighted fan hit by a foul ball after being shown to an unscreened reserved seat (suit against the club)Court: Supreme Court of MissouriDocket: Heads Up!
Does a club owe a warning or a screened seat to an older, nearsighted fan who believed his reserved seat was protected?
The facts
In 1940 a 64-year-old man attended a minor-league doubleheader in Kansas City. He asked for the best reserved seat and an usher led him to a grandstand seat, which he believed was behind the protective wire screen. In fact only the area directly behind home plate was screened. He was nearsighted, and a foul ball struck and injured him. He argued the club should have given him a screened seat or warned him, given his age and poor eyesight. The trial court ruled against him and he appealed.
You have the facts the court had. Guilty or not guilty? Call it in the game with your friends, then see what the court actually decided. Wrong call, you drink.
Citation: Hudson v. Kansas City Baseball Club, Inc., 349 Mo. 1215, 164 S.W.2d 318 (1942)
Read more at case-law.vlex.com. The source reveals the outcome.