The New York Post reported on a $5 million lawsuit filed by 16-year-old Rebecca Sacerio against the state's Department of Education for an injury to her finger sustained during softball practice. The incident took place on May 2, 2009.
The Brooklyn girl claims her Lincoln High School softball coach told her to "take it like a man" after she reported her finger injury. Although her right index finger was broken in three places, she took her coach's advice and completed the five-hour training session.
But now, if the girl's New York personal injury lawyer prevails, it looks like the coach is the one who will have to "take it like a man."
Rebecca Sacerio said she suffered permanent damage to the finger, blaming her coach for delaying treatment:
"I told her it looked swollen and had a funny color. [Coach Sari Schoenfeld] told me her hand always looked like that when she played."
Sari Schoenfeld was reportedly hitting line drives to the players in a routine fielding drill. After getting hit on her left index finger, a second line-drive allegedly hit the injured digit and hurt it some more. When she returned home, the finger was swollen and in tremendous pain.
Her mother gave her Tylenol and applied ice to the finger but after two days without improvement, she saw a doctor. The girl was told she would need surgery, which consisted of three operations involving vertical and horizontal rods to reset the bones.
She claims the delayed treatment requiring the more invasive procedure led to a postsurgery infection and that now she has arthritis in the finger. She says her right index finger now is "useless."
Jeffery Lessoff, the girl's New York personal injury attorney, offered the following statement:
"You don't force a girl to continue practicing if she's injured. This is not the New York Yankees here."
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