Jennifer Connell, 54, believes little Sean Tarala, now 12, should have known better than to jump into her arms as a means of welcoming her to his birthday party in 2011.
Connell is seeking $127,000 in damages for suffering a broken wrist when the two fell to the ground in the rough reception.The aunt, who has no children of her own, said her life has not been the same since the 50-pound bundle of boyish energy bounded into her open arms. Connell testified Friday at Connecticut Superior Court in Bridgeport.
“I live in Manhattan in a third-floor walkup so it has been very difficult,” “And we all know how crowded it is in Manhattan.”“I was at a party recently and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvres plate,” she added.The minor child is the only defendant in the case.Connell’s troubles on started Mar. 18, 2011, when she arrived at her nephew’s Westport, Conn., home.
Sean was outside playing with a brand new bike he had received for his birthday. The excited boy dropped his new set of wheels and ran toward his aunt to greet her, shouting, “Auntie Jen, Auntie Jen.”
“All of a sudden he was there in the air, I had to catch him and we tumbled onto the ground,” Connell testified, according to ctpost.com. “I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you,’ and there he was flying at me.”Although hurt, Connell said, she didn’t tell her nephew the extent of her injuries.
“It was his birthday party and I didn’t want to upset him,”Sean, whose mother died last year, appeared confused as he sat with his father, Michael Tarala, in court Friday, according to ctpost.
A family member at the boy’s home declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Connell, during her testimony, said Sean had always been “very loving, sensitive,” toward her, but she still feels the pre-teen is responsible for her injury.
NY Post
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