No fence, no game on field

A state court ruled in favor of a family whose children are endangered by fly balls.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- A state appeals court Monday ruled that a small borough cannot use its baseball field until it builds a fence to keep balls from flying into a family's yard.
Corey S. and Kristie A. Chase live beside Ron Houben Memorial Park in Eldred, a town of fewer than 900 residents along the New York-Pennsylvania border.
Balls from the field have landed in their pool, destroyed their lawnmower and broken a car windshield. The family's lawyer, Raymond W. Bulson, said Monday the couple was so concerned about the danger they regularly kept their two young children inside on spring and summer days.
Commonwealth Court, agreeing with a county judge, ruled 3-0 that the borough should raise a fence to protect the family.
The Chases live about 20 feet from the field, on which organized baseball has been played for the past 50 years. The borough spent $1,900 to raise the 5-foot fence to 13 feet, but that apparently did little to stop balls from landing on the Chases' property. At a trial, the couple produced dozens of baseballs collected from their property.
"Nobody does it on purpose, I firmly would admit that, but if a hit baseball lands on top of a child, that child's going to be severely injured, if not dead," Bulson said.
The borough's position
The borough, which is the defendant in the lawsuit, had argued the family "came to the nuisance" when they moved next to the field and then exacerbated the problem by removing a line of tall evergreens that served as a natural barrier.
Judge Bernard L. McGinley, who wrote Monday's opinion, noted the trees were old and dropping their branches and needles.
"It would be unreasonable to force the Chases to live on a property surrounded by dead or dying trees, which may or may not have been the lesser of two evils," McGinley wrote.
Eldred Mayor William Luce said Monday no decision has been made on whether to appeal. He said 99 percent of the town's residents are irritated by the lawsuit.
"I realize it's a hazard to the Chases, but they knew it was there when they bought the house," he said.
Harassment and vandalism
Corey Chase, a 37-year-old factory laborer, said he was concerned the ruling might prompt more of the harassment and vandalism his family has endured since first asking the borough to put up a net about four years ago.
"It's more than just baseballs. It's vandalism. You get the swearing that you have to listen to all the time," he said. "Plus, I've seen them drink back there, I've seen them smoke back there. This group that's in this town, they're a horrible, horrible group of teenagers."
Three teams with teenage players were moved to another field after the county judge issued an injunction in September. Luce said the borough will consult with the leagues and coaches before deciding whether to build a higher fence or abandon baseball at the field.
Eldred, in McKean County, is about 90 miles east of Erie.
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