Member of the American College of Forensic Examiners On August 8, 1993, Plaintiff was attending a professional baseball game between the Florida Marlins and the Philadelphia Phillies at Joe Robbie Stadium (which is now Pro Players Stadium) in Miami, Florida. The plaintiff had attended several games in the past, and was familiar with and knowledgeable about the sport. The plaintiff was sitting in the Founder's Club Seats, which run along the third base side of the field, along with two friends. The seats were situated directly in the line of fire of the visiting team's bullpen. The plaintiff and her friends were seated in the fourth or fifth row and her seats was two seats away from the bullpen. The only safety measure in place was protective netting that spanned across two upright poles. The height of the netting was originally 13 feet, but after minimal safety testing, the netting was lowered to approximately ten feet on April 2, 1993, primarily for spectator viewability and aesthetic concerns. Later that day, the owner gave verbal instructions to the contractor to lower the poles to 8 feet, thus reducing the height range of the netting.
Sometime during the seventh inning, Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams began to warm up in the bullpen. As the plaintiff turned to speak to her friend, Mitch Williams threw a pitch that went over the netting and hit her directly in the forehead. The plaintiff was temporarily knocked unconscious. As a result of her injuries, she suffers from short term memory loss, and her work productivity has been severely impaired.
Dr. Leonard Lucenko, sport, facility and risk management liability expert testified that stadium management clearly had a responsibility to provide the spectators with a safe environment in which to enjoy the game. However, they breached that duty. The bullpen/seating configuration was inherently unsafe. The fans were improperly placed directly in the line of fire of the bullpen. The owners and operators should have made the safety and protection of the spectators their first priority and not have lowered the netting to the point where it no longer afforded any protection to the spectators seated in that area. Dr. Lucenko testified that in his opinion lowering the netting to 8 feet was a wholly inappropriate act, and stadium ownership and management should have recognized that it would greatly increase the risk of injury to the spectators. Dr. Lucenko testified that the fact that other stadiums have the same bullpens configuration did not change his opinion that this configuration is inherently unsafe, particularly at the professional level where pitchers, such at Mitch Williams, can throw high, wild pitches. $2.5 million dollar verdict for the plaintiff Linda Postlethwaite v. Robbie Stadium Corporation; Florida Marlins; Huizenga Holdings; Philadelphia Phillies; Mitch Willaims; H.o.k. Sports Facilities Group; Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum; M.A. Mortenson Company; Carlson Fencing; and Todd Pratt
