Posted on 07/27/2005 11:42:57 AM PDT by Stevieboy
Lawsuit in sledding tragedy
Family of crash victim launches $255G action against City of Gatineau, claiming hill was unsafe
THE FAMILY of a 12-year-old Gatineau boy who died in a sledding accident last winter has launched a lawsuit against the City of Gatineau in the hope that no one else will have to experience what they have lived through.
"It hurts so much when the doctor is telling you that your son is dead following an activity like that, so I don't want no one else to live it," said Francois Lessard, whose son Simon died as a result of head trauma he received after hitting a tree while sledding with a friend on Feb. 5 at Lemoyne Park.
The family is asking for $255,000 -- $100,000 each for both Francois and his wife, France, $25,000 for their daughter, Nathalie, and another $30,000 for pain, suffering and funeral expenses.
TREES DANGEROUS
"We're not doing it for the money, we're doing it for our son," said Lessard.
(Excerpt) Read more at ottawasun.com ...
But for some strange reason I doubt that will happen.
We SHOULD ban snowmobing, I don't know anybody who has anything positive to say about it.
Great. Now we'll see kids wearing helmets as they sled. Fellas, how the hell did we make it this far in our lives without killing ourselves?
Clearly, we just need to cut down all the trees. They create a patently unsafe environment, no matter where they're growing. And if it'll save just one life, then it'll be worth it. It's for the children, after all.
Good eye. I think I'll go buy snowbobing.com right now. It has a ring!
I don't know anybody who's ever said anything about "snowmobing," positive or negative...but I'll take your advice. Next time someone wants me to go out and snowmobe, I'll "just say NO."
Does that make me a snowmobaphobe?
"We're not doing it for the money, we're doing it for our son," said Lessard.
{sigh}
I see their point. If that tree had been planted 3 feet in any direction instead of where it was, this tragedy would never have happened. (sarc)
BAN SLEDDING! "If it saves just one child..."
Well this is going to confuse the George W. Bush haters.
He is supposedly trying to rid the world of trees so they can't pin this one on him!
Well, I went and read the whole article and I still don't quite follow what excatly they're suing for - $100,000 each for mother and father and $25,000 for their daughter, but for what?
In any case, their claim that the city is somehow at fault for having trees on this hill is ridiculous - if anything it is obviously the responsibility of those going sledding, or their parents in this case, to choose a venue for sledding without any solid ojbects in the way that they might run into. AND, the city had signs posted that the hill was not meant for tobogganing.
When I lived in the Ottawa area years ago, I always felt that sledding was a dangerous sport, having broken both my arms on two different occasions. For that reason, I stuck to the sport we called "bunking," which required slick streets, a pair of ice skates, and a tolerant motorist, to whose car we would hang on as we were dragged all over the neighborhood.
None of those pesky trees to get in the way.
Don't forget that the global warming he is causing will prevent all such accidents.
No snow, no sledding accidents.
Isn't it about time that we all accepted resposibility for our own actions and not blame everyone else.
The only way to stop these lawsuits is for them to start turning around and counter-suing. It was up to the parents to make the initial determination of the safety of the area. If they had concerns, the son wouldn't have been there.
My dad once offered to take me sledding behind his car at dusk because it took all day to find my sled and polish the runners. (I thought he was out of his mind and told him I could afford to wait until tomorrow. What was he thinking?)
You're joking, right?
First, this was an article about sledding, not snomobiling. Second if you haven't found anybody with something positive to say about snowmobiling, you're not trying very hard.
I had a friend crippled surfing in "hurricane" surf can his family sue the countries this storm originated from ?
Yes...someone sue the parents for allowing their son to take part in such a dangerous sport. Negligence! Can't believe they put a price on their son...wonder what the daughter is worth?
"We SHOULD ban snowmobing, I don't know anybody who has anything positive to say about it."
What is snowmobing? ;) I'm sure you meant snowmobiling, or what we Alaskan's refer to as snowmachining.
Don't know anybody who has anything positive to say about it? Ask an Alaskan! Many Alaskans even get to work on their "machines". Many kids use them as transportation to school. And of course, snowmachining is FUN!
Large tractor inner tube (>10ft diameter). Mob of drunk people on it. Spinning down the hill sending people flying.
The only negative thing I can say is don't be the guy in the hole in the inner tube. That sucks.
Wow. Darwin at work.
Where was the parental supervision? Why is there no countersuit by the city against the parents for clean-up costs, mental anguish of city workers, etc.?
We're not doing it for the money...
Then don't accept any money and get a free lawyer.
Do they sue each other over hockey injuries too? I mean seriously, those long sticks and sharp skates and slippery ice have got to go.
That might not be enough. Probably need to level out all of the hills while you are at it.
Seriously, in NY we have laws against it and you can be arrested. What used to be the funnest part of winter is now outlawed.
Sleds should obviously be licensed, require a waiting period prior to purchase, have an instant background check performed and kept in a locked safe to prevent such terrible things from happening. We should all be glad that ths was not an assault sled or more people could have been tragically and needlessly murdered. ... or perhaps it is trees that this should apply to...
Like the taxpayers?
If they win this case I would expect the Jude to sent a letter to every taxpayer in the city with a bill for their share of the judgment, and a have the Judge include a clear statement of what the Taxpayers did wrong. I would also have him send a letter to every voter explaining how their decisions at the ballot box helped caused the Taxpayer to be liable. (Some folks will get two letters).
The company I work for sells snowmobile trailers, it's part of our business so to us it's a good thing!
Really? How does that work?
Does winning a lawsuit somehow improve his son's standing in the afterworld?
The city should sue the parents for a million dollars for failing to act like parents resulting in the death of their son and smearing the good name of the city.
Maybe the city should put 3' concrete barriers around the trees, and paint them red. Then nobody could run into the trees.
Or, if people think the concrete barriers are too dangerous, maybe a 6' barbed wire fence would work.
How about planting so damned many trees, boulders and brambles on the hill that they can't get their sleds up it to slide down the 'no sliding' zone?
"...at the time of Simon's sledding accident, there was a sign posted at Lemoyne Park notifying the public that the Brebeuf Hill was not meant for sliding.
I think this suit is simply another case of the parents having to blame someone, anyone for the child's death.
Prizes to Oberon and Dinsdale. To the rest, sorry, I did not mean to be obtuse.
Nonsense. Any child will tell you that all hills are meant for sliding...it's just that some are crazier than others.
As a kid I broke the top out of a runner sled while forcing the sled to turn tight enough to avoid the barbed-wire-topped fieldstone fence at the bottom of the hill. I was disappointed at having broken the sled, because I really wanted to go again.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.