{"id":16613,"date":"2015-10-13T15:23:33","date_gmt":"2015-10-13T22:23:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=16613"},"modified":"2015-10-13T15:27:07","modified_gmt":"2015-10-13T22:27:07","slug":"what-kind-of-person-would-even-think-of-doing-this","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2015\/10\/13\/what-kind-of-person-would-even-think-of-doing-this\/","title":{"rendered":"What Kind of Person Would Even THINK of Doing This?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Let me preface this by saying that, despite all appearances, this is not – NOT <\/strong><\/em>– snark!<\/p>\n

Just in case it slipped under your radar, no doubt you’ll want to learn about Jennifer Connell<\/strong>.  She’s an HR manager who lives in Manhattan who sued her now 12 y\/o nephew for $127,000<\/em><\/strong> for an “exuberant hug” he gave her at his Birthday party when he turned 8 y\/o.<\/p>\n

\"PoliticsPlus_Aunt-Sues-Nephew_01\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The defendant, Sean Tarala,<\/strong> had just gotten his first two-wheeler as a Birthday present, and was excitedly riding around when Aunt Jen arrived to share in the festivities.  From testimony at trial, when Sean spotted Connell, the excited boy dropped the brand new bicycle to the ground, exclaiming, “Auntie Jen, Auntie Jen.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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JENNIFER CONNELL TESTIMONY at TRIAL<\/a>:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

“All of a sudden he was there in the air, I had to catch him and we tumbled onto the ground,” <\/em><\/p>\n

“I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you,’<\/strong> and there he was flying at me.”<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

She did suffer a broken wrist in the fall, but she told the jury she didn’t say anything at the time because “It was his birthday party and I didn’t want to upset him.” <\/p>\n

But later, she apparently had some serious second thoughts – at least according to the pleadings of her lawsuit<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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“The injuries, losses and harms to the plaintiff were caused by the negligence and carelessness of the minor defendant in that a reasonable eight years old under those circumstances would know or should have known that a forceful greeting such as the one delivered by the defendant to the plaintiff could cause the harms and losses suffered by the plaintiff.”<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

And to buttress her request for $127,000 in damages, according to her testimony, it has severely hampered her social life:<\/p>\n

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“I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

<\/p>\n

Fortunately the six-member Superior Court jury found that Sean was not liable.  AND it took them only 20 minutes to reach a verdict!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Auntie Jen gets ZERO!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"PoliticsPlus_Aunt-Sues-Nephew_03_Verdict\"<\/a><\/p>\n

To add another layer of sorrow, Sean’s Mother passed away last year – but she was aware of the lawsuit which had already been filed.  He was in court with his father, Michael Tarala<\/strong>, for the trial, and “appeared confused,” according to the Connecticut Post<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Perhaps wisely, Jen Connell “pleaded with judicial marshals to escort her to her car through a throng of media waiting outside the Main Street courthouse.”<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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PHOTO: Jennifer Connell, 54, leaving court after suing her 12-year-old nephew for wrist inj. She gets $0. pic.twitter.com\/A8pWTMjFTA<\/a><\/p>\n

— Kevin Galliford (@KallMeKG) October 13, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n