Dennehy v. East Windsor Regional Board of Education
Annotate this CaseIn 2015, defendant Dezarae Fillmyer, who coached the Hightstown High School girls’ field hockey team, instructed players to warm up in an area adjacent to the school’s turf field, where the boys’ soccer team was practicing. Plaintiff Morgan Dennehy, a member of the field hockey team, was struck at the base of her skull by an errant soccer ball, allegedly causing the injuries of which she complained in a lawsuit she filed against Fillmyer, the school, and others. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of defendants, holding that plaintiff was required to show defendants’ acts or omissions rose at least to the degree of recklessness described in Crawn v. Campo, 136 N.J. 494, 507-08 (1994), and Schick v. Ferolito, 167 N.J. 7, 18-20 (2001). The Appellate Division reversed, holding that a simple negligence standard applied. The New Jersey Supreme Court held the coach’s acts and omissions alleged here were governed by a simple negligence standard rather than the heightened standard of recklessness the trial court applied when one participant injures another during a recreational activity. The Appellate Division was affirmed and the matter remanded to the trial court for further proceedings.
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