A Los Angeles Superior Court jury has awarded $108,500 to an LA Dodgers fan who alleged he was beaten without justification by security guards during a game at Dodger Stadium in 2018 after he told them he needed to use the restroom.
Daniel Antunez maintained in his lawsuit that he was left with a broken right ankle that required him to leave the venue in a wheelchair. The jury reached its verdict Wednesday morning, Feb. 28, assessing fault at 65% to the Dodgers organization and 35% to the plaintiff.
The jury did not make a finding that would have allowed Antunez to be awarded punitive damages.
According to the suit, on April 24, 2018, Antunez and three fri
ends went to a game between the Dodgers and Miami Marlins to celebrate his 30th birthday. One of Antunez’s companions accidentally spilled a drink on a man in front of her, which prompted a later verbal dispute in the concourse between Antunez’s friend and the wife of the man doused with the beverage, the suit stated.
Antunez tried to calm his friend down and then sought to use a nearby restroom, but was thrown to the ground by security guards who wanted him to use a bathroom farther away, according to the suit.
In their court papers, the Dodgers’ attorneys maintained Antunez punched one guard in the face and put fingers into his mouth to choke him, prompting other guards to assist their colleague and take the plaintiff to the floor. The defense attorneys maintained the guard Antunez allegedly punched saw the wife of the man accidentally doused with the drink standing near the closest restroom and he did not want the plaintiff interacting with her.
The Dodgers’ lawyers did not dispute that Antunez suffered a broken ankle.