Connell’s nephew, who she described as “very loving, sensitive”, was present in court alongside his father and was described as appearing “confused”. She was forced to do so because the homeowner’s insurance company only offered to pay her one dollar and, under Connecticut law, she couldn’t name the company as the defendant.
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“Our client was very reluctant to pursue this case, but in the end she had no choice but to sue the minor defendant directly to get her bills paid”. The boy was being sued by Jennifer Connell who was injured by him four years ago. She didn’t want to do this anymore than anyone else would. We are disappointed in the outcome, but we understand the verdict. The lawsuit was settled on Tuesday and the jury found that Sean Tarala, now 12, was not liable for injuries that were caused to his aunt, Jennifer Connell, at his 8th birthday party.
Jainchill & Beckert said Connell, a 54-year-old human resources manager from New York City, is being attacked on social media and has “been through enough”.
The boy was celebrating his eighth birthday when spotted his aunt and came running over, the station reports.
Sean then, according to court testimony, launched himself at Connell in an effort to leap into her arms and hug her. The fifty pound Sean leaped into her arms and the two fell to the ground.
While Cornell didn’t complain at the time, she said that the injuries she suffered has made life increasingly hard in recent years.
“All of a sudden he was there in the air, I had to catch him and we tumbled on to the ground, I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you, ‘ and there he was flying at me.”
Court documents state that Connell fractured her left arm and needed surgery. But the fact that she was able to bring it as far as the courtroom leads us to question whether equally outrageous claimants exist in the UK.
“It’s incredible the power that the Internet has that something can go viral, completely out of context”, she said.
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Many took aim in particular at her statement to jurors, reported by the Connecticut Post, that because of her injury she could not easily hold an hors d’oeuvre plate at a recent party.
