UPPER EAST SIDE — An Upper East Side woman who sued her 12-year-old nephew for jumping on her during a birthday party left a Connecticut Superior Court empty-handed on Tuesday afternoon, when a six-member jury ruled against her, according to court documents.
On March 8, 2011, Jennifer Connell was visiting her then 8-year-old nephew Sean Tarala in Westport, Connecticut, when the boy jumped on her to greet her, knocking her to the ground in the process, according to a lawsuit filed with Bridgeport Superior Court.
The lawsuit was filed in 2013, but the case had its hearing in Bridgeport on Tuesday, where Cornell told the presiding judge that she loves her nephew but that he should be held accountable for hurting her, according to ctpost.com.
Even after the ruling was made against her, an attorney representing Connell at court on Tuesday told the New York Daily News that the boy should have been punished.
“We do not take great pleasure in bringing a minor to court,” Attorney William Beckert told the Daily News. “She is not here enjoying a moment of this."
Tarala “should have known better" he said. "We have rules for children. He was not careful. He was unsafe.”
Bekert did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Connell, who is a human resources manager according to reports, was seeking $127,000 in damages, court documents show.
The tumble caused a fracture to her left arm that required surgery and left a scar, the lawsuit claims. In addition to medical bills, Connell has had to deal with lost wages, "mental anguish," and her "ability to pursue and enjoy life's activities has been reduced," according to the suit.
“All of a sudden he was there in the air, I had to catch him and we tumbled onto the ground,” Connell told the ctpost. “I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you,’ and there he was flying at me.”
The injury has made it harder for the 54-year-old to do everyday tasks like climbing stairs or going to parties, Connell told the court on Tuesday, according to ctpost.
“I live in Manhattan in a third-floor walk-up so it has been very difficult,” she reportedly said. “And we all know how crowded it is in Manhattan.
“I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."
The attorney representing Tarala, Thomas Noniewicz, did not immediately respond to request for comment.
