This seems a bit crazy. 
 

 

I don't know anything about this incident but in my experience Trinity has some of the best sideline integrity in Kentucky.

I was there. Unfortunate? Yes. Lawyer driven money grab? IMO Yes.

Frivolous lawsuit. If your on sideline, there is risk of getting hit. You would think a sports reporter would know that.

14 minutes ago, Rock85 said:

I was there. Unfortunate? Yes. Lawyer driven money grab? IMO Yes.

3 minutes ago, Tigerpride94 said:

Frivolous lawsuit. If your on sideline, there is risk of getting hit. You would think a sports reporter would know that.

Interesting. My initial question was whether or not this was a case of insurance battles....Cowgill's health insurance saying Trinity is liable for the health and well being of press members on the sidelines at their games, and Trinity/Trinity's insurance saying "oh hell no."

If Cowgill has ongoing expenses for surgery, rehab, etc, I can certainly understand where he'd have to depend on his insurance to cover costs. I know I've heard of instances where insurance companies say they won't pay until after the insured first tries to collect from other liable parties. That could bring about the whole lawsuit aspect.

But this sounds like it's a little more than the scenario described above. The article states that Cowgill's attorney is asking for a jury trial. I'd think if this was just following insurance procedures, then they'd just go directly through a judge and once they got a judgment from the bench, then Cowgill could turn around to his insurance company and say, "Okay, did that. Time for you to pay up." Instead, he's going through the full jury process and everything. Plus the article states that Cowgill is seeking "payment for damages, court costs and other relief". The payment for damages and court costs make sense, but "other relief" makes me wonder if he's going for more money than that...a la "payment for pain and suffering."

As the article is written, this makes Cowgill look bad, which is disappointing because he's definitely one of the top-notch TV sports reporters around the state, in addition to having been around the block a time or two. I'd have to think this would be something he'd see as a hazard of the job.

I wonder which sign company Trinity is using to hurry up and print the "Press and media members only permitted on the field with proper credentials. All members of the press and media enter the playing field area under their own risk." signs for Marshall Stadium this fall.

While I agree that there are far too many people on HS sidelines that are not working, doesn't look like it would mean much in this case.  If you are on the sideline, you run the risk of being bowled over, be it 1 or 100 people around you.

3 hours ago, The Raven said:

While I agree that there are far too many people on HS sidelines that are not working, doesn't look like it would mean much in this case.  If you are on the sideline, you run the risk of being bowled over, be it 1 or 100 people around you.

I agree completely - ESPECIALLY for a football game. For the observers on the sidelines, I think football, in particular, presents more unknowns and hazards towards the sidelines. Soccer and lacrosse have a general movement of play for you to follow, whereas football has play after play with wide receivers streaking down in different directions at full tilt, and there's not always a clear indicator of "oh, the ball/gameplay is gonna be moving in my direction," until its right there. For someone who's been on the sideline at as many games as Fred Cowgill has been, that should be a welllllllllll identified hazard for him by now.

Packed sideline or not, if I'm sitting on the jury, I need to see some cut and dry contributory negligence on the part of Trinity to even sniff at thinking about siding with Cowgill...and even then, I think that would be an extremely hard sell for me.

Video of the incident caught on camera…

6 minutes ago, Brcatz said:

Video of the incident caught on camera…

IMG_1747.MOV

That is not working.  You can go ahead and post the original link.

I spent a few minutes reading all the comments on Twitter about this incident, I don't think there was a single comment supportive of Cowgill, it was uniform condemnation. 

3 hours ago, Colonels_Wear_Blue said:

For someone who's been on the sideline at as many games as Fred Cowgill has been, that should be a welllllllllll identified hazard for him by now.

This. In fact, he tweeted the next morning he’d been on sidelines for 36 years. It stinks, but it’s an occupational hazard. 
 

 

I was at this game. This is 100% a money grab. If he felt like there were too many people on the sidelines, he could have removed himself. 

22 minutes ago, gchs_uk9 said:

This. In fact, he tweeted the next morning he’d been on sidelines for 36 years. It stinks, but it’s an occupational hazard. 
 

 

From the complaint with jury demand:

"As a direct and proximate result of the defendant's breach of duties and failure to exercise its duties owed to the plaintiff, Cowgill was injured when numerous players, during a particular play on the goal-line where Cowgill was standing, ran to the sidelines and directly into Cowgill and collided with him as he was filming the action."

So Cowgill's attorneys are saying that it's Trinity's legal "duty" to keep someone safe when they are standing immediately at the side of the the goal line of a football game with a camera up to his face, while there's a goal line play taking place no more than 107 feet away from him?

Also, are they trying to claim that Carmel's football team and staff was crowding him on the sideline at the goal line? Imma need to see that video.

I'm going to go ahead and say it...this is a bunch of crap, Fred. You're not a spring chicken any longer, and it turns out you were just an old man holding a camera who couldn't get out of the way fast enough when a bunch of high school football players came barreling at you. Hazard of the job, man. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. I'm sorry about your knee and I'm sure it sucked, but this is on you, and you alone.

34 minutes ago, gchs_uk9 said:

This. In fact, he tweeted the next morning he’d been on sidelines for 36 years. It stinks, but it’s an occupational hazard.

How many hundreds and hundreds of videos are there on YouTube of the broadcast personnel at NFL games on the sideline with those satellite-dish looking things, and high school and college cheerleaders getting absolutely clobbered on the sidelines?

This was absolutely just an occupational hazard.

If I was Trinity's legal team, I'd make a 5 hour super-cut of every one of those sideline pileup videos on YouTube, submit it as an exhibit, and make the jury watch every single one of those collisions at three-quarter speed and the ask the jurors, "So, where are all of these folks' lawsuits claiming physical and mental pain and suffering?"

There was only one other person even close to Cowgill when it happened. Another media member.