California Verdicts

Plaintiff(s):

Bret Mitchell Carter (Male, 18 Years)

Plaintiff Attorney(s):

Ralph B. Wegis;
Law Offices of Ralph B. Wegis;
Bakersfield,
CA,
for
Bret Mitchell Carter ■ Joseph H. Low, IV;
Law Offices of Joseph H. Low IV;
Long Beach,
CA,
for
Bret Mitchell Carter ■ Nicholas C. Rowley;
Carpenter, Zuckerman & Rowley, LLP;
Beverly Hills,
CA,
for
Bret Mitchell Carter

Defendant(s):

Kern High School District

Defense Attorney(s):

Michael C. Kellar;
Robinson & Kellar;
Bakersfield,
CA,
for
Kern High School District ■ Christopher J. Hagan;
Brumfield & Hagan;
Bakersfield,
CA,
for
Kern High School District

Defendant Expert(s):

Dean Delis;
Neuropsychology;
San Diego,
CA called by:
Michael C. Kellar, Christopher J. Hagan

Insurer(s):

Everest Re Group Ltd.

In December 2010, plaintiff Bret Mitchell Carter, a senior at Bakersfield High School, agreed to wear a chicken suit for his school’s pep rally on the Friday before the school’s matchup against Clovis West (Calif.) High School in the Valley Conference championship game. Clovis’ mascot was a golden eagle and Carter, who was the student body president, dressed up to mock Clovis’ mascot at Bakersfield High School prior to the game. However, before Carter could approach the midcourt circle for a routine with Bakersfield’s mascot, a driller, Carter was attacked by a group of junior varsity football players, who rushed out of the crowd to wrestle with the giant chicken. The initial students who attacked Carter were only play fighting him, but additional students jumped in and began kicking and stomping on Carter in the chicken suit. The students eventually pulled the attacking students off of Carter, and the entire attack lasted around 12 seconds. Eleven students involved in the altercation were subsequently suspended for their role in the incident. Carter sustained injuries to his head. Carter sued the operator of Bakersfield High School, the Kern High School District. The matter proceeded to a bifurcated trial. Carter claimed that prior to the routine, the varsity football players were told that he would be wearing the chicken suit, but that the junior varsity players were not told about the routine. Thus, he contended that school officials encouraged the stunt and then failed to break up the attack quickly enough. Defense counsel contended that security personnel for the school delayed in intervening in the conflict because they were confused about the nature of the routine. Counsel also contended that the junior varsity football players should have been told about Carter’s role in the stunt, just as their varsity teammates had been told.

Carter’s face was severely swollen with multiple abrasions. He was subsequently taken to an urgent care facility for stitches and to check for a potential concussion following the hits he took to the head. However, three days after the incident, Carter still felt unwell. He was ultimately diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury that impacted the frontal lobes, which contain most of the dopamine-sensitive neurons in the cerebral cortex. The dopamine system is associated with reward, attention, short-term memory tasks, planning, and motivation. Carter claimed that as a result of the attack, he suffers from migraine headaches, psychological problems, and a hormone deficiency, which damaged his pituitary gland. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that Carter, who was a successful student, changed after the attack and had near-failing grades in college. Counsel also contended that Carter will require growth hormone therapy for the rest of his life, as well as special education classes and ongoing counseling. Thus, plaintiff’s counsel asked the jury to award Carter $45 million in total damages. Defense counsel contended that Carter was not diagnosed with a brain injury until three years after the incident, after filing his suit against the school district. Counsel asserted that within those three years Carter was treated by physicians multiple times, but never displayed symptoms consistent with a head injury.

On June 29, 2016, the jury returned a verdict for Carter, finding that the school district was 100 percent at fault for the incident. It also rejected any fault on the part of Carter or his co-students, and even found that the football players bore no responsibility for this incident. After plaintiff’s counsel delivered opening statements in the second phase of the trial and started with witnesses, the school district agreed to tender its full $10.5 million insurance policy limits in order to settle with Carter.

Judge:

David R. Lampe

Demand:

None reported

Offer:

$1,000,000

This report is based on information that was provided by plaintiff’s counsel. Defense counsel did not respond to the reporter’s phone calls.