Disney goes to trial over safety of Tower of Terror

[Ziggie]

By Jason Garcia and Scott Powers

Orlando Sentinel

In a rare thrill-ride personal injury lawsuit that has made it to trial, Walt Disney World is in court this week defending the safety record of one of its most popular attractions.

An Orange County jury heard opening arguments Wednesday in a case pitting Disney against Marvin Cohen, a now-80-year-old Pennsylvania man who suffered a stroke twelve years ago after riding the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, at the theme park now called Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Cohen’s lawyers intend to show he was a physically active housing developer who suffered a tear in an artery leading to his brain while riding Tower of Terror with his family on March 28, 1998. That, they say, caused a debilitating stroke a few weeks later.

What makes the case particularly unusual is that Cohen’s lawyers are not arguing that something went wrong with Tower of Terror, such as equipment failure or operational malfunction. Rather, the ride itself — simulating an out-of-control elevator in a creepy hotel — is on trial.

Last year, the Orlando Sentinel reviewed hundreds of personal injury cases filed against Central Florida theme parks since the start of 2004, including Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens, and found 26 other cases claiming properly-functioning rides caused injuries. Most of them were settled or dismissed. None went to trial.

Cohen’s lawyers intend to present evidence that the Tower of Terror, which features a succession of drops and ascents, creates a whiplash effect that can seriously injure even healthy riders.

“This case is about the placement of show or entertainment over safety,” Cohen’s lead attorney, Barry Novack, told jurors.

Cohen’s suit accuses Disney of multiple shortfalls with Tower of Terror, including ignoring recommendations from its own safety experts when building the attraction and failing to provide appropriate warnings to guests about the safety risks.

Disney’s lead attorney, Ron Cabaniss of Cabaniss Smith Toole & Wiggins, outlined a multi-part defense for the jury Wednesday. First, Cabaniss said, evidence will show the ride is safe, carefully planned, tested and monitored, and well within safety standards. And it exerts far less speed or force on a body than people believe; high speeds and forceful drops are largely illusions, enhanced by special effects.

Second, Cohen had plenty of warnings to understand what the ride was like before he boarded. And, Cabaniss said, Disney’s evidence will show that Cohen had other medical problems, and his stroke — suffered 23 days after the ride — was caused by factors other than the attraction.

“It is a fun, safe ride for the entire family, no matter young or old,” Cabaniss said of Tower of Terror. “If you can withstand the forces of daily activities from going over speed bumps or potholes … you won’t be harmed by this ride, unless you’ve got some sort of perhaps pre-existing condition.”

As the sides outlined their cases in opening arguments, they indicated the jury is likely to get a close look at how Disney planned Tower of Terror and how it works. The attraction’s designers and independent ride consultants are among witnesses expected to testify. Cohen’s life and medical history also likely will be dissected, as Cabaniss and his team seek to explore alternative causes for his stroke.

Novack has led a number of ride-injury lawsuits against theme parks over the years. The Beverly Hills, Calif., lawyer has also won high-profile victories over Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., including a 2005 decision that forced theme parks in California to abide by a higher standard of care when providing for guest safety.

This is not the only lawsuit alleging strokes caused by Tower of Terror, which opened in 1994, but it is the only one to reach trial. Novack has another case, alleging a British teenager suffered a stroke after riding in 2005. And a Pennsylvania man claims that his wife’s 2001 stroke was caused by either Tower of Terror or another thrill ride, Rock-n-Roller-Coaster. Both of those cases are pending.

http://thedailydisney.com/blog/2010/04/disney-goes-to-trial-over-safety-of-tower-of-terror/

 

[Mouse Detective]

I'd love to be on this jury......and send Mr. Cohen and his lawyers home with a big fat ZIP. The stroke is unfortunate but to blame it on a ride he took weeks prior is only an attempt to squeeze the Mouse for money. Even if the stroke had happened immediately, that doesn't mean the ride caused it. And taking this a notch further, even if the ride had caused it, that doesn't mean Disney was at fault. What if the stroke had happened after a trip through Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, does that make Disney responsible for the health of each passenger?

The question here is NEGLIGENCE? Did Disney do something wrong? Did they do something they shouldn't have done or did they fail to do something they should have done? I hope the jury is smart enough to see that theme parks couldn't exist if the operator had to know the health of each passenger.

 

[Thrill Seeker]

Well, soon we might be seeing lots of warning signs posted all around Tower of Terror and have guests given "room passes" with warnings on them before entering i.e. Mission: SPACE. From what I read this is just a case of someone not reading the warnings before going on the ride. The guy is 80. Probably shouldn't go on a thrill ride like Tower even if you are healthy. That's your own bad judgment, not Disney's fault.

 

[rodserling27]

Just another jabroni trying to make a dime off of Disney. Out of the millions of people that ride ToT every year that ARE NOT injured, and HE claims it's unsafe. Right. Fantastic logic. Sorry bud, you lose.

 

[Kamikaze]

Well, soon we might be seeing lots of warning signs posted all around Tower of Terror and have guests given "room passes" with warnings on them before entering i.e. Mission: SPACE. From what I read this is just a case of someone not reading the warnings before going on the ride. The guy is 80. Probably shouldn't go on a thrill ride like Tower even if you are healthy. That's your own bad judgment, not Disney's fault.

It was 12 years ago, according to the article.

 

[TubaGeek]

Everybody wants money, but no one wants to earn it.
What a dope.

 

[Ziggie]

We, as a society, are getting lazy in regards to safe-guarding our own lives. Is it always someone else's fault? Seems to be, doesn't it?

 

[Master Gracey 5]

I'd love to see the 'evidence' they have that ToT caused his stroke considering it happened 12 years ago. This should have been thrown out of court as frivolous the minute it appeared on the judge's desk.

 

[Ziggie]

The stroke happened a few weeks after his ride on ToT. But the entire series of events happened 12 years ago.

Why the rush to justice? Or, did they file their claim back when it happened and it took this long to make it to trial? :shrug:

 

[Hakunamatata]

The stroke happened a few weeks after his ride on ToT. But the entire series of events happened 12 years ago.

Why the rush to justice? Or, did they file their claim back when it happened and it took this long to make it to trial? :shrug:

This type of litigation takes forever. Im sure Disney did what most large corporations do when they are faced with this type of frivolity. They decided that enough is enough and they probably tried to make it as expensive as possible to continue with this suit by dragging it out. Not that I agree with it, but its just the reality of how these things go down.

 

[jakeman]

The merits of the case aside, if the Cohen family were to win, the implications, within the theme park world, would be staggering.

If the mechanics of dropping down and propelling up can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to cause injury, what happens to ToT? Or Dr. Doom? Or various carnival rides that exhibit the same force?

While this is only one ride, most theme parks, amusement parks, and fairs have at least one if not more rides with the same basic mechanics as ToT.

It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.

 

[njDizFan]

It's going to get to the point where everyone has to sign a legal disclosure prior to entering the park.

 

[Ziggie]

This type of litigation takes forever. Im sure Disney did what most large corporations do when they are faced with this type of frivolity. They decided that enough is enough and they probably tried to make it as expensive as possible to continue with this suit by dragging it out. Not that I agree with it, but its just the reality of how these things go down.

Thanks hakun for your post ~ I appreciate the explanation

 

[Ziggie]

It's going to get to the point where everyone has to sign a legal disclosure prior to entering the park.

With the recent transportation issues, they just might make that disclosure a requirement for being anywhere even near the property :lol: Like once you enter central Florida? :lol:

 

[joel_maxwell]

This is one of the leading reasons I really dont like mentality of American society. I know that all citizens of this nation are not like this, but there are enough cases as ludicrous as this one, that gives our society a bad reputation globally. A sue happy reputation.

Just makes me sick.

 

[DisneyLeo18]

Awesome, peoples valuable time and money going into this nonsense case. It's beyond me how they let this thing go to trial. THOUSANDS of people ride ToT a day, and some one has a stroke 3 weeks later. Sorry to hear the man had a stroke, but I can't stand people like this.

 

[PurpleDragon]

What a joke, these people can't be serious?!?!?! I would not even be able to keep a straight face while in that court room. I'm assuming the judge was bored and was in the mood for a good laugh.

There is no way this frivolous joke of a lawsuit will get anywhere. Millions of people have ridden ToT over the years without incident, how in the heck do they think that one person getting hurt out of those millions of people means the ride is not safe? Jeez some people will do anything for a buck.

 

[glee]

:snore::snore::snore::snore::snore:


Not as if there is warnings everywhere!
:hammer::snore::snore::snore:

 

[mcjaco]

While, on the outside this case looks frivilous, there must be evidence with the claimant's stroke that the judge believes might have been onset from ToT. That's not to say it was, but through pre trial motions, something must be a sticking point that is causing the judge to reject motions to dismiss.

We can't tell for sure, as the article is summary of the case, and we don't know what evidence was presented to Disney during the claim, what counter evidence Disney has, and how the whole claim was handled.

I went to trial once on a claim. It was the scariest week of my claims adjuster life. Just because I thought the claim was defensible (and frivilous), doesn't mean a jury will. I got lucky and the case was awarded to my client. I never tried a case after that.

Barry Novak is good at these cases, and I'm sure Corporate Legal stepped in and decided to take a stance against him and this type of case.

I guess what I'm saying is, don't judege the case off of this article. There's a lot more going on that we don't know.

 

[rock_doctor]

Just another jabroni trying to make a dime off of Disney. Out of the millions of people that ride ToT every year that ARE NOT injured, and HE claims it's unsafe. Right. Fantastic logic. Sorry bud, you lose.

The thing is they don't loose. In most cases nuisance lawsuits are settled out of court because it is cheaper to pay them off then to even start to deal with it. So they have nothing to loose by suing. Disney should let each and every case go to trial. As you said many tens of millions of people have ridden this and just about every ride at Disney with less then a hundredth of a percent who have issues. Stop paying off and start taking them to trial.