here is another article i found on this
On this point, everyone agrees: Scott Swimm and David Pfahler collided
on a gentle slope at Arrowhead Mountain ski resort on Jan. 12.
Beyond that, it's a muddle of accusations and acrimony. Naturally, lawyers are involved.
Pfahler is suing Scott for more than $75,000 in expenses, lost vacation
time and the usual laundry list of complaints you get in personal
injury cases.
If you're wondering why I'm referring to Scott by his first name,
that's standard newspaper style when writing about minors. Scott is 8
years old. He was 7 when the accident happened and is probably the only
kid in his class at Eagle County Charter Academy who can define
"lawsuit."
He is definitely the only kid in his class who has been served court papers by the Eagle County Sheriff's Office.
"It's truly bizarre," said Robb Swimm, Scott's father and co-defendant.
"This Pfahler guy is going to force my 8-year-old kid into a deposition
and put him through this for money."
Pfahler, 60, lives in Pennsylvania. The suit claims Scott's negligent
skiing led to a collision that tore Pfahler's rotator cuff. It also
seeks compensation for Pfahler's wife, Marlene Ambrogio, for "nursing,
medical and other services rendered."
Pfahler declined comment through his attorney, Jim Chalat of Denver. Of course.
So what we have is Robb Swimm's account. He was 15 feet away from the accident. Here's what he says he saw.
On a fairly level stretch at the base of Arrowhead, Pfahler, skiing a
few feet in front of Scott, turned and stopped. The 48-pound boy's skis
passed over Pfahler's. The two got tangled up and fell.
Swimm estimates Scott was going about 10 mph.
Scott, who began skiing at age 3, got up, apologized and tried to ski off.
"That's when the guy grabbed my son around the legs, dragged him back
down, cursed at him and threatened to sue him and his whole family,"
said Swimm, who skied over and told Pfahler to unhand the boy. What
followed was a 20-minute argument and a visit from the ski patrol.
And that was it, for eight months.
In September, deputies served Scott with papers to appear in U.S.
District Court. "That scared Scott a great deal," his dad said. The boy
had to sign his name to the documents. Luckily, he had learned cursive
writing the year before.
A private deposition is set for Jan. 7.
Chalat is a veteran personal injury attorney and an expert on lawsuits
resulting from ski-slope mishaps. He figures about 50 such cases come
through his office annually.
"Typically, skiers make their peace privately," he said. "Usually, it's
only when people are being boorish or don't accept responsibility that
the lawyers are called."
Swimm isn't worried about the money. He's sure his insurance company will cover that.
It's the principle of the thing that feels like a ski pole to the gut.
"If he (Pfahler) gets anything, I'm going to be pretty upset," Swimm
said.
Scott still skis, though he's less keen on it. "He's scared to ski at
Arrowhead Mountain now because he knows the guy has a time-share
there," his dad said.
Susan Swimm, Scott's mom, is furious. "It's ludicrous," she said. "This man should be drawn and quartered."
Sorry, ma'am. This is America. Evisceration is left for the lawyers.
For now, Swimm has taken away this lesson: "Anyone who skis or takes
their kids skiing should be aware that there are people out there who
will sue at the drop of a hat."
Sadly, his son knows that, too. Maybe it will lessen the shock when he learns about the Easter Bunny
Im sorry but if you can take the little kid down after he apologized to you then you could not have hurt your shoulder too bad. but my favorite part as got to be "It also
seeks compensation for Pfahler's wife, Marlene Ambrogio, for "nursing,
medical and other services rendered."" for christs sake he is your fucking husband, you are supposed to take care of him when he is sick. maybe my mom should sue me for all the times she took care of my when i was sick as a kid huh. thats just stupid.