Case involving injured fan on bleachers

Pryor v. Iberia Parish Sch. Bd., 42 So.3d 1015 (La. App. Jun. 16, 2010). Pryor, an elderly woman, attended her grandson's football game at a stadium operated by the school board. As a result of a defective step in the bleachers, Pryor fell and broke her leg. She brought a tort claim against the school board alleging negligent maintenance of the stadium bleachers. The trial court concluded that while the school board acted negligently in its maintenance of and failure to warn about the defective step, that, on balance, the school board did not act unreasonably. The present court overturned the lower court on the grounds that the trial court, when it determined the reasonableness of the school board's action, considered the bleachers as a whole without examining the specific defect. As a result, the court concluded that not only was the school board negligent, but that it acted unreasonably. The court awarded a total of $300,000 to Pryor for her injuries.