Patron seriously injured during dart competition in bar

This is a premise liability case happened in New Mexico where a bar and restaurant that sponsors an amateur dart throwing team was involved in a dart throwing accident. An amateur dart thrower over threw her target getting the dart stuck in the wall 5-7 feet above the intended target. The plaintiff in this case stood on a stool to retrieve the dart and subsequently breaks the stool and hits a table on the way down, breaking his arm and sustaining permanent damage to his brachial plexus nerves. A safety/bar security expert is needed to speak on the proper standards for bar room managers and owners with regard to preventing accidents.

Question(s) For Expert Witness

Are you familiar with the proper standards of restaurant accident protocol?

Expert Witness Response E-007804

The plaintiff should never have been allowed to stand on the bar stool in order to retrieve the dart. It was absolutely the bar's responsibility in this instance and they should have had an employee monitoring this competition and help with this role. By allowing the dart throwing team to participate, special forethought should have gone into considering any precautionary or extra safety measures, in addition to accident protocol guidelines established for both the team and the employees on staff during the practice periods.

Restaurant owners and managers have a responsibility not only to their patrons, but to their employees, to maintain a safe environment. Not having an employee on hand to monitor competition puts everyone inside the bar, including other patrons, at risk.

This expert has over 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry. His experience includes positions at convention hotels in Los Angeles and Washington D.C., as well as management with restaurant companies in the country. He specializes in restaurant openings and consulting. He currently serves as Associate Professor of Hospitality Management at a major university.