ORLANDO, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - Sued over damage to a child's eye, Disney says the injury was the result of "horseplay gone wrong" and not its fault.
Veronica Mendez and Louis Gemma sued Disney in March in Florida state court in Orlando after their child, L.G., was injured at a friend's house with a Star Wars lightsaber. They allege the toy was defective and unreasonably dangerous.
The parents have made a "flickering light" in the lightsaber an issue but, according to Disney, have not alleged "what it was about the 'flickering light' - as opposed to a simple act of carelessness by (L.G.'s friend) - that caused L.G. to be struck in the eye while the two were dueling," a motion to dismiss filed Nov. 1 says.
Disney says the plaintiffs can't assert a product liability claim because, among other things, they have failed to adequately identify the product beyond claiming it was purchased at Savi's Workshop.
"(V)isitors to that Workshop are provided with the opportunity to design, build and customize lightsabers from a wide variety of component parts of their own choosing," the motion says.
"Consequently, the resulting lightsabers are unique to the purchaser. Without ultimate facts, (Disney) has no way of knowing which 'product' is at issue."
A flickering light is not a strong enough allegation to sustain the case, Disney also argues.
"A dying battery could well be the culprit and have nothing to do with a defect, or perhaps the battering caused by the children's dueling broke the toy," the motion says.
Aimee Adams and Frank Hosley of Bowman and Brooke are representing Disney. The plaintiffs are represented by Shane Newlands of Newlands & Clark in Lakewood Ranch.