ESTATE OF PFLANZ v. DAVIS
Apr 21, 1997OUTCOME: The Court reversed the trial court's grant of summary judgment and agreed that the resolution of the question of the Hunters' breach of their duty was a question for the jury.
18 year old Eric Hunter hosted an outdoor party on his family's 10 acre property at night at which his parents had told him that alcohol was not allowed. Between 30 to 150 guests from ages 14 to 25 arr ... ived and departed during the night. Hunter's parents sat on the deck attached to their house watching guests arrive but their view of the party was obstructed by trees. Approximately 75% of the guests drank beer and more than 50% drank until they were intoxicated. According to guest Windell, the drinking was pretty obvious and no one told the guests that drinking was prohibited. Throughout the evening, Mr. and Mrs. Hunter remained on the deck or in the house watching television. They had told their son that female guests were welcome to use the house's restroom. Some guests carried beers into the house when they went inside. The Hunters claimed they saw no alcohol. At approximately 1:00 a.m., 18 year old guests and best friends, Pflanz and Davis, began wrestling and horseplaying, which was common for them to do when they were intoxicated. Davis had consumed approximately twelve twelve-ounce cans of beer and was visibly intoxicated. Guest Windell intervened and separated the two; however, Davis continued to grab Pflanz from behind and fell over backwards, pulling Planz down with him. Pflanz could not move or feel his legs so an ambulance was called and he was transported to the hospital where his diagnosis was cervical 5 quadriplegia complete. A guardianship on his behalf filed a negligence suit against Mr. and Mrs. Hunter and Erik Davis. The Hunters responded with a summary judgment motion, which the trial court granted. The guardianship appealed.
