“It was very, very stressful — the lawsuit itself and waiting for the lawsuit to come to trial. The whole thing really didn’t make a lot of sense.”
Mike Meissner coached a youth baseball team in North Carolina for sixteen years. “I think I’ve made a difference in some kids’ lives,” he says. He sought to teach his players not only about the game but about sportsmanship and being a good loser. But, when he thinks back on those sixteen years, the first thing that comes to mind is not the positive lessons he imparted upon his players — it is the lawsuit.
One Saturday during a pop fly drill, a player dove for a ball. The sun got in his eyes, the boy said, and, instead of landing in his glove, the ball hit him in the mouth. The players family sued Mike and the league.
“When I first heard about it,” says Marion Mayes, director of a nearby youth league in North Carolina, “I was kind of shocked because of the fact that that’s just normal play.”
The plaintiffs alleged that Mike had been negligent in conducting his drill. The lawsuit dragged on for years before going to trial. “It was very, very stressful,” Mike said.
At first, the plaintiffs named Mike as a defendant personally. After about a year, he was dropped from the case, but he was still subject to extensive depositions and trial preparations as the lawyers prepared to argue the plaintiffs’ claim that the league was responsible for Mike’s alleged negligence.
Finally, a jury decided that Mike was not negligent in conducting his pop fly drill that day.
Though he was eventually vindicated, the lawsuit still taints Mike’s memories of the many years he spent as a volunteer coach.
“What you don’t need is something like this discouraging people from the thought of going out and helping other children,” he says.
This video is part of the FacesOfLawsuitAbuse.org campaign.
Duration : 0:3:0
[youtube zRCZ9xlkTHQ]
Don’t parents sign …
Don’t parents sign waivers when getting their kids into sports?
wow….just WOW …
wow….just WOW anyone who sues for this deserves death for being a douche
i crushed my finger …
i crushed my finger in a baseball game and didnt sue anybody well considering ma dad is ma coach though but still i wouldnt have sued anybody for tht its natural to get an injury during sports.
Thats ridiculous!! …
Thats ridiculous!! He was only being a coach! These other douches that sued need to just go to hell…Hopefully they didnt win..
lol jesus christ. I …
lol jesus christ. I remember when I was 11 (now 19) and I was in little league. I got hit with a baseball so hard in the face as well as colliding with the left fielder. to sue someone for that is just ridiculous.
i think the world …
i think the world needs a catastrophic disaster in which 99.9% of the population dies….. i would be willing to be one of the casualties if it stops this.
Don’t blame the kid …
Don’t blame the kid, blame the parents. I am guessing the kid just wants this to go away.
wat a pussy! i …
wat a pussy! i borke my nose at baseball practice and my parents didnt sue the coach
There is a kid from …
There is a kid from Lithonia Ga. name Derrick Lewis thats interring druid hills high school next year. He is going to be one of most talented baseball players in the country in a few years look out for him (DERRICK LEWIS) and he wants to go to the University of Florida! Wow when you see this kid play youre going to say there must be a baseball heaven!
how is this a …
how is this a lawsuit on the coach! It was the kid’s fault for diving and you cant control where the ball drops.
That kid was a …
That kid was a straight up PUSSY, the coach is not at fault at all, he can’t help it if the kids sucks ass.
thats happened to …
thats happened to me too
i agree. in the US, …
i agree. in the US, people are like, oh let me find ways to set others up so that i can sue them and get money..
Amazing… I got …
Amazing… I got hit in the nose with a baseball, My nose was bleeding and the rest of that week my nose was numb, lol you don’t see me suing my coach. God, sometimes I think that this world is crazy, wow, its really sad
Disgusting! …
Disgusting! Parents like this are screwing up their children and don’t even know it! By doing this, you’re taking away one of the greatest childhood joys… that of learning and playing baseball… a great sport with teamwork. Probably some of the best times when I was younger were playing or watching a game. When your child grows up dysfunctional, blame yourself! You selfish twit! It wasn’t the teacher’s fault.
Of course, if one …
Of course, if one kid bullies another kid, the parents of the victim can now sue you for NOT benching the bully.
are you kidding? I …
are you kidding? I don’t even hold doors open for people any more because of lawsuit bullcrap.
dont you have to …
dont you have to sign those wavers that say that say we dont take any responsibility for what injuries your child sustains or something?
dis is bull crap …
dis is bull crap man the kid dove and the coach did not tell him to dive the kid dove on his own i broke my arm playin baseball and i did not sue
It’s not the world …
It’s not the world that is lawsuit crazy, it’s the U.S. Every country I go to, the biggest joke is about how people sue each other over everything here. Other countries stop the idiocy. It’s really just greed. It started with a headline: “Man wins $900 million for slipping on the floor” and it has snowballed. Now the legal system is paralized. My state STOPPED TAKING CASES!!!!! Real case? Sorry, you’re out of luck. Knowing that–people take advantage of too. “You can’t sue me”
i say suck it up i …
i say suck it up i played outfield it not that bad i play first now and you miss the ball its gunna hurt
a pop fly is a …
a pop fly is a normal play. His parents are over reacting. If the sun got in his eyes, were sunglasses!
Visit my channel please
i got hit in the …
i got hit in the face with the ball during a game and the league paid for my surgery and hospital bill well they paid what our insuence paid
It’s wrong to sue …
It’s wrong to sue over a fall and accidental hit by the ball, now, should the coach have intentionally threw a 90 mph fastball at the kids head….now that’s a lawsuit. but he didn’t. the world is lawsuit crazy. I was told last fall i was told I could no longer sit players for misbehavior. LL says they must play REGARDLESS! That gives the kids a license to do anything they want, including endangering other kids! It’s time to consider dropping kids sports. Let-em play nintendo and get fat.
Why would they sue …
Why would they sue the coach or even how? What happen to league insurance? This doesnt make sense at all