According to a recent article posted on the Daily Tribune (Cook, J., 2011), a State Court of Appeals has overturned a previous ruling and is allowing a lawsuit to move forward alleging that a cheerleading coach, the team, and the East Suburban Football League may be held liable for the injuries sustained to Jessica Sherry (age 11 at the time of the injury) when she was dropped during a cheerleading stunt.
The injury occurred during the “Spirit Day” camp in 2005. According to the attorney for the Sherry family, the supervising coach “violated the organization’s rules, which require the supervisor to remain with the cheerleaders during their stunts” (Cook, J., 2011). Jessica was tossed up into the air (flyer) and was not caught by her bases resulting in her shattering her elbow.
According to the attorney representing the football league, his clients “deny committing even simple negligence” and stated that his clients “did not breach an ordinary standard of care” (Cook, J., 2011).
Top Risk Factors Involved in Catastrophic Injuries in Cheerleading
Unfortunately, with the rise in injuries sustained by cheerleaders who perform stunts, lawsuits are going to rise as well especially as information gets into the public’s hands about improving safety in cheerleading. The top risk factors involved in catastrophic injuries in cheerleading include the following:
- Unqualified coaches (volunteer or paid coaches without hands-on experience in stunting and tumbling progressions)
- Lack of supervision by the coach and/or supervisor
- Improper progression of lead-up stunts prior to performing advanced stunts
- Performance of stunts on hard surfaces (gym floors, grass, dirt, rubberized track, artificial turf)
- Lack of provision of proper emergency medical care (no emergency action plan in place); coaches not trained in CPR/First Aid/AED
Defining Negligence
The question of negligence will be determined by a jury of peers. The attorney for the cheerleading coach, team, and football league stated that his clients did not commit even simple negligence. Negligence is defined as “failure to use ordinary or reasonable care” (Prentice, W., 2010). The jury must determine if the people involved used ordinary or reasonable care.
According to Prentice (2010), the standards of reasonable care assumes that a person a) is of ordinary and reasonable prudence, b) brings a commonsense approach to the situation, and c) will operate within the appropriate limitations of one’s own educational background.
Using these guidelines, one would expect that the coach would follow the youth football organization’s rules requiring the cheerleading supervisor to be present when the cheerleaders are practicing/performing stunts. According to the article by Cook, J., (2011), the coach left the girls unsupervised.
The article also stated that the coach allowed the girls to advance to a full extension stunt (advanced stunt) without first mastering the half extension stunt (preparatory stunt). Proper progression of stunts also seems like a common sense approach to stunting safety.
Safety Advice for Cheerleading Coaches
While the attorney for the defendants stated that this move to allow the negligence lawsuit to move forward could have a negative impact on volunteer coaches in youth sports (Cook, J., 2011), it should in fact have an “eye-opening” impact on all coaches who are not experienced or properly trained to coach cheerleading programs.
The simplest safety precaution is to mandate that cheerleaders in youth sports organizations keep their feet on the ground especially in light of the critical height research that has proved that grass surfaces are no safer than hardwood gym floors. Common sense will tell you that coaches without proper hands-on training and experience in stunting should have their athletes keep their feet on the ground. The risk of serious and/or catastrophic injuries drops significantly if athletes are not lifted or tossed into the air.
With this in mind, any stunting done on the sideline of football, soccer, lacrosse, baseball, or any other outdoor sport places the athletes at an increased risk for catastrophic injury. Stunting on gym floors is already considered unsafe, but many programs continue to place athletes at risk for serious head, neck, and orthopedic injuries by performing advanced stunts inside a gym.
Ignorance is not a defense that will hold up in the court system. Before stepping in to the role of a “supervisor” or coach for a cheerleading program, know the risks. Know how to reduce those risks. And in the event of an injury, have the proper medical training so that you can manage the athlete and the athlete’s injury efficiently.
Sources
- Cook, J. (March 23, 2011). “Mom Sues After her 11-year-old Daughter Dropped during Cheerleading Stunt at Camp in Sterling Heights”, (Accessed on dailytribune.com on March 25, 2011).
- Prentice, W.E., (2010). Essentials of Athletic Injury Management. (8th Ed.). McGraw-Hill Higher Education: New York, NY.
- Shields, B. & Smith, G. (November, 2009). The Potential for Brain Injury on Selected Surfaces Used by Cheerleaders. Journal of Athletic Training, 44(6).
- Sportsmd.com, “Preventing Catastrophic Injuries in Cheerleading”, (Accessed March, 25, 2011).
- Suite101.com, “Enhancing Safety Outcomes in Cheerleading”, (Accessed on March 25, 2011).
- Suite101.com “Coaches: Protect Yourselves from Litigation”, (Accessed on March 25, 2011).
Terry Zeigler - Educating through writing with over twenty-five years of experience as a Kinesiology Professor and Certified Athletic Trainer.
Join the Conversation