A man attending a sports event in Ohio decided to stand during the national anthem but came to a dreadful realization. The person sitting next to him had gotten their hand stuck in the stadium’s folding chair he had been sitting in. “I immediately asked if they were okay and what had happened,” wrote Reddit User FascistsRBootlickers on r/legal. The stranger was allegedly hunched over and clearly in pain.
”They then took off a wrap from their hand where they had stitches from a recent surgery,” OP recalled. Without hesitation, FascistsRBootlickers rushed them to the aid station to be treated by medics at the event. After around half an hour, the stranger emerged, saying that they were recommended to visit their doctor again to ensure their stitches were alright.
Needless to say, it’s easy to understand why the injured stranger would have been in pain, considering their stitched hand was smashed by the folding chair. What isn’t clear is why or how their hand was in OP’s chair before the national anthem played.
“Keep your hands on your own seat and you won’t have that problem,” remarked a Redditor, dozens upvoting in agreement. “Yeah they should have watched where they put their hand. If you know not to put your hand in a door jamb, you should know not to put your hand where a seat folds up,” said another.
The Ohio Attendee Worries That the Injured Stranger Will Sue Them
As to why FascistsRBootlickers posted this story to r/legal, he wanted to know whether he could be legally liable for what happened to the stranger. Even though it was an accident, OP worries that the injured person might go after him later. Fortunately, the comment section alleges that anything legal related to this accident would be in his favor.
“The stadium would be liable, not you. Standing for the national anthem is expected behavior. If the chair has moving parts that are exposed, it’s on the stadium,” wrote a commenter. “From what you said you weren’t negligent or careless in any way. It was an accident not caused by you. You’re fine,” added a second user.
This Ohio sports event attendee allegedly can’t be sued by the stranger with the injured hand, though the guilt of smashing their hand to respect the national anthem could haunt OP for a while.
