“Harmless pranks” are not always harmless! Many of us have experienced or witnessed situations that are intended to get a laugh, but what happens when it goes too far and someone is injured? We recently handled a case for a client who suffered severe injuries after a pranking tradition got out of hand at a high school homecoming.
A High School Tradition Gone Wrong
High school homecoming is an annual tradition across the country and here in Missouri. It is a time to welcome back former members of the community and normally involves a dance and a football game. A St. Louis high school also has a tradition of prank wars between the junior and senior classes, including TPing houses. Our client was seriously injured when a student took the prank too far.
Our client was woken up in the middle of the night to chaos outside of his home during high school homecoming week. He went outside to find numerous students damaging his property. He attempted to identify the students, but a teenage driver decided to flee the scene and our client was struck and dragged under the vehicle for over 50 feet. He suffered life-threatening injuries, including internal bleeding, road rash burns that required him to be admitted to the burn unit, a dislocated hip and traumatic hematomas.
Personal Injury Attorneys on Your Side
After the accident, our St. Louis personal injury attorneys obtained the insurance policy limits against the teenage driver and pursued a claim against the teenager’s parents. Our investigation discovered the parents went to the same high school and were aware of the pranking tradition that takes place during high school homecoming. We argued the parents were negligent for failing to supervise their son and allowing him to participate in the events that led to the incident. As a result, we successfully recovered the full insurance policy limits under the family’s homeowner’s insurance policy.
For more information about our recent cases and safety tips, visit our legal blog. If you have experienced a personal injury and need a legal team to represent your case, contact MHM for a free consultation.