Originally published Monday, December 20, 2010 at 5:23 PM
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Seahawks fan who was hit by chunk of ice thrown by Jets player has filed civil suit
Seahawks season-ticket holder Robert Larsen is suing New York Jets player Shaun Ellis, who threw a large piece of ice into the stands at Qwest Field in December 2008, hitting Larsen.
Seattle Times staff reporter
The incident has been witnessed by more than 140,000 people on YouTube, and resulted in a $10,000 fine from the NFL.
Now, Seahawks season-ticket holder Robert Larsen is suing a player from the New York Jets who threw a large chunk of snow into the stands at Qwest Field in December 2008. The civil suit was filed Thursday in King County Superior Court, alleging the Jets' Shaun Ellis threw the object, causing physical injury, disability, pain, emotional trauma, medical expenses, loss of earnings and earning capacity and other damages.
You could say it's a situation that snowballed, but that would minimize the allegation Larsen was injured in the incident. It also mischaracterizes the object that was thrown into the stands.
"Snowball is a misnomer," said Jeffrey Sadler, Larsen's attorney. "It was a large chunk of ice."
Ellis, 33, remains with the Jets, where he is in his 11th season.
The video of the incident shows Larsen being struck by the object, then raising it up over his head. His attorney, Jeffrey Sadler, said once Larsen got to his car and warmed up he began to realize the extent of the injuries. It got worse over the next few days, and he sought treatment.
The suit does not specify the damages being sought, but Sadler said the request is for medical expenses and a "modest" amount for pain and distress.
Ellis was fined $10,000 in 2008 by the NFL for the incident. The league prohibits players from interacting with fans in a way that could cause injury or present crowd-control issues.
The Jets are named as a co-defendant in the suit. The franchise did not immediately return a request for comment from The Seattle Times.
"We attempted to reach an amicable resolution," said Sadler. "And we were unable to do so."
Larsen remains a Seahawks' season-ticket holder.
"Same seats," Sadler said.
Danny O'Neil: 206-464-2364 or doneil@seattletimes.com
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