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The suit Justice Wooten allowed
to go forward claims that in April
2009, Juliet Breitman and Jacob Kohn,
both 4, raced their bicycles while
their mothers supervised- Dana
Breitman and Rachel Kohn. Place: A
Manhattan, NY sidewalk/building on
East 52nd Street.
During the race, they struck an 87-
year-old woman, Claire Menagh, who
walked in front of the building and,
per the complaint, was "seriously and
severely injured," suffered a hip
fracture that required surgery. She
died three months later of unrelated
causes.
Menagh's estate sued the children and
their mothers, claimed they acted
negligently during the accident.
Breitman's lawyer, James P. Tyrie,
argued that the girl was not "engaged
in an adult activity" at the time of
the accident. "She was riding her bicycle
with training wheels under the supervision
of her mother," and was too young to be
held liable for negligence.
Tyrie also argued that Juliet should not be
held liable because her mother was present.
"A parent's presence alone does not give a
reasonable child carte blanche to engage in
risky behavior such as running across a street,"
the judge wrote. He added that any "reasonably
prudent child," who presumably has been told to
look both ways before crossing a street, should
know that dashing out without looking is dangerous,
with or without a parent there. The crucial factor
is whether the parent encourages the risky behavior.
If so, the child should not be held accountable.
The ruling by Justice Paul Wooten, of State Supreme
Court in Manhattan, did not find that the girl was
liable, but allowed a lawsuit brought against her,
another boy and their parents to move forward.
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