Community Corner

Jury Selection Under Way in Lawsuit Against Engel

Incident at Halloween party in 2008 the subject of complaint.

 

Jury selection has begun in the case involving Melissa Engel and the Markham Meadows Campground stemming from an incident on Oct. 23, 2008.

In the complaint, the plaintiff, Roberta LaBranche, is seeking relief for negligence and recklessness for the alleged intentional misconduct that led to neck and back injuries while staying at the campground in East Hampton, which is owned by Engel.

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On Thursday, two of six jurors were selected, according to the attorney for the plaintiff, Edward W. Case of Gerace & Associates. Jury selection will continue in Middletown on Friday and if necessary, Tuesday. Two alternates also will be chosen.

According to the complaint, the campground was sponsoring a Halloween party where food, music and alcoholic beverages were provided by the defendant in the recreation hall. At some point during the evening, LaBranche got up from her metal folding chair for a moment and when she went to sit back down, Engel pulled the folding chair out from under her as a prank, causing “the plaintiff’s body to slam to the floor where she forcefully hit her back, buttocks and head, thereby sustaining serious injuries, some of which are likely to be permanent.”

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“It looks like a practical joke that went terribly awry,” Case said. “Now my client is suffering the results of that joke. It’s unfortunate.”

Among other things, the complaint alleges that Engel was impaired or intoxicated which led to her reckless conduct and the resulting harm, including LaBranche losing consciousness.

In her answer, prepared by Attorney Robert G. Clemente of Cooney, Scully and Dowling, Engel, the former chair of the East Hampton Town Council, denies many of the allegations, including that alcoholic beverages were provided or sold at the party. She does admit she had consumed some alcohol but, in the plaintiff’s requests for admissions, denies she was under the influence of alcohol.

There is also a dispute as to what actually happened. Under the plaintiff’s requests for admissions, LaBranche suggests Engel, prior to removing the chair, put her finger up to her lip as a signal to others seated around the table to keep quiet, a claim Engel denied. In the same request, Engel is asked to confirm she intended to pull the chair out from under LaBranche, then sit down upon it so that LaBranche would end up on Engel’s lap. Engel responded by denying any intention for LaBranche to fall but did not address the rest of the question.

In addition to the injuries sustained, the plaintiff alleges, among other things, that she also aggravated a pre-existing lumbar and cervical disc disease and has experienced lower back pain with extremity numbness. As a result of the injuries, LaBranche claims she was forced to incur medical expenses for care and treatment, diagnostic studies, therapy and prescription medicine, all to her damage and detriment. She also claims her earnings capacity has been impaired.

In Engel’s special defense, she alleges the “plaintiff’s injuries and damages were caused in whole or in part, by her own carelessness and negligence,” including among other things, that the plaintiff "was impaired as a result of drinking intoxicating liquors" and "failed to look where she was sitting." LaBranche denies all the allegations in the special defense.

LaBranche is seeking money damages, double and treble (punitive) damages as per the recklessness count, attorney’s fees and such other relief the court deems appropriate.

The presentation of evidence is scheduled to begin Dec. 13.

“It’s in the hands of the attorneys and we deny the charges and hope we can settle amicably,” Engel said.


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