VAIL — A 60-year-old man is taking an 8-year-old boy and his dad to court, claiming the third-grader caused a ski-slope collision that left the older man with a shoulder injury.
David J. Pfahler of Allentown, Pa., filed suit in Denver federal court claiming Scott Swimm of Vail, then 7, was skiing fast and recklessly when they ran into each other in January. Pfahler’s suit says he suffered a torn shoulder tendon.
Scott’s father, Robb Swimm, said that he saw the crash and that Scott was skiing slowly and in control.
Scott’s mother, Susan Swimm, said her son weighs 48 pounds and couldn’t have been going more than 10 mph. “Who in the world sues a child?” she said. “It just boggles my mind every day.”
The suit, which was filed in September, is set for a settlement conference in February. Clare Huntington, an associate professor at the University of Colorado School of Law, said Scott will probably be dismissed as a defendant under laws that allow parents to be sued but not their minor children.
