Court: Foul ball lawsuit is out

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — The 7th District Court of Appeals has upheld a trial judge’s decision to toss out of court a lawsuit against the Mahoning Valley Scrappers by a woman who said she was injured by a foul ball at a Scrappers home game.

On Tuesday, the three-judge appellate panel unanimously upheld Judge Timothy E. Franken’s dismissal of the lawsuit last year without a trial on the grounds that Jane Warga, of South Meridian Road, assumed the risks inherent in attending the game.

Warga, who said she was hit on the head by the ball at Eastwood Field in Niles on July 20, 2004, had sued the minor league baseball team for more than $75,000 in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, saying the team was negligent.

Warga said the ball hit her while she was away from her seat en route to a refreshment stand, and she suffered pain and blurred vision and incurred medical expenses.

“The trial court’s decision in this case is consistent with Ohio law,” the appellate judges ruled. “The game was in active play when appellant [Warga] chose to leave her seat and move about the stadium,” and Warga assumed the risks associated with attending the game, said the judges.

The appeals court noted that the field follows several safety precautions, including having protective netting over seven sections of seats from dugout to dugout, at least 13 warning signs about foul balls, and warnings on all ticket stubs and over the public address system.

The decision was written by Judge Cheryl L. Waite, with Judges Gene Donofrio and Mary DeGenaro concurring. The appellate panel heard oral arguments on the matter Feb. 24 in a session at Struthers High School.