Everyone who knows anything about hockey knows it's a rough sport: The crooked noses, the black eyes and missing teeth adorning hockey players say it all. But who knew the seemingly innocent game of air hockey, played on a table with a smaller plastic puck, could be just as dangerous?
Reyna Mason learned the hard way at a Chicago-area Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant, at least according her lawsuit discussed in Chicago Now's Chicago Bar-Tender blog.
For those who are not familiar with Chuck E. Cheese's, it's a restaurant chain featuring video games and other coin-operated entertainment catering to children. They also serve pizza; which is probably what Ms. Mason was eating at her booth when the puck from a nearby air hockey table allegedly left the table and struck her in the head.
The incident allegedly took place on Feb. 22, 2008 at the Skokie location. The owner of the restaurant chain, CEC Entertainment Inc., is the named defendant in the suit.
Ms. Mason states in her complaint that the defendant was negligent when it failed to inform her of the possible dangers of sitting next to an air hockey table. She is also claiming that the restaurant "failed to have adequate safety precautions" for those sitting near the game.
Curiously, she also claims that the defendant failed to make sure "that the hockey puck was in a good, safe and proper condition." I'm not sure how such an assessment would have been made, but Chicago injury lawyers would probably tell you that it's standard "boiler plate" language for such a suit.
The suit claims damages in excess of $50,000 for injuries that she says are "of a personal, permanent, and pecuniary nature." The extent of her injuries was not stated.
But unlike professional hockey players, Ms. Mason likely does not wear her hockey scar as a badge of honor.
Related Resources:
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Premises Liability - Overview (FindLaw)
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Jury Awards $3.2M to Woman Injured at Ikea Store (FindLaw's Injured Blog)
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Call a Chicago Accident Attorney (FindLaw)
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