Plaintiff Terry Sanderson claims Gwyneth Paltrow showed 'conscious disregard for people' in ski accident
PARK CITY, UTAH: Gwyneth Paltrow stood trial on Tuesday, March 21, for a ski 'hit and run' accident where the plaintiff said the crash took place from her "conscious disregard for people." Terry Sanderson, a retired optometrist was left with a traumatic brain injury following the 2016 incident at Deer Valley Resort, Utah.
On the first day of the trial in a Park City, Utah courtroom, Sanderson's attorney called the actions of the award-winning actress "reckless" while the two sides were present in the court.
Feb 26, 2016. The actress who was seen emotionless throughout the trial covered her face with a blue notebook when she entered and exited the courtroom, reported NY Post.
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'She knew skiing that way was reckless'
In his opening statement for the trial on Tuesday, lawyer Lawrence D Buhler stated, "Distracted skiers cause crashes. Defendant Gwyneth Paltrow knew that looking up the mountain and to the side, while skiing down the mountain, was dangerous," and told the jury that the 'Goop' founder "knew that skiing that way…was reckless."
The 69-year-old retired vet sued the 50-year-old actress accusing her of plowing into him and fleeing the scene, leaving him with permanent brain damage. Sanderson is seeking $300,000 in damages from Paltrow. The actress countersued the former Army optometrist accusing him of being the one who plowed into her and she claimed that she stayed at the crash scene. In the counterclaim, she sought the cost of her legal fees along with $1 sought in damages as "her injuries were relatively minor."
Paltrow denied Sanderson's claims
Buhler told the court that, "Ms Paltrow has been skiing since she was three years old, she considers herself an intermediate skier. She has skied about half a dozen times at Deer Valley ski resort."
Paltrow previously denied Sanderson's claim that she allegedly slammed into him and that she was "uncaring" at the time. Her lawyers said, "The undisputed facts do not support the assertion that Paltrow committed a hit-and-run,” and added that "the evidence indicates that defendant Paltrow’s post-collision actions were ‘reasonable under the circumstances'."
The retired vet's attorneys stated that following the crash, he still suffers from brain injury symptoms. According to New York Post, Paltrow told the court that despite Sanderson's claim of suffering symptoms of severe injuries, the 69-year-old man traveled on multiple occasions to different places internationally, including two weeks in Central Europe, two weeks in the Netherlands, and three weeks in Thailand.