Law Humor

Another Suit Alleges Negligent Laying-On-Of-Hands

By Kevin Underhill

Here's a report of a lawsuit filed on March 2 in Superior Court in Oakland, California:

Rev. Dr. Cheryl Elliott v. Randy Keyes; The United Pentecostal Church of Modesto; Does, No. RG09-438883 (Oakland Super. Ct. filed 3/2/2009)

Negligence action. Defendant Keyes knocked the plaintiff over backward when he hit her forehead without warning in the practice of "laying hands," and he neither helped her up nor acknowledged the incident afterward.

To my knowledge, this is the second lawsuit based on alleged negligence in the course of a similar Holy-Spirit-related practice.  The previous one was filed in June of last year, when Matthew Lincoln sued the Lakewind Church in Tennessee after injuring his back in a fall.  In that case, though, Lincoln only charged the church with negligent supervision of the "catchers" who it assigned to catch people overcome by the spirit.  The new case appears to target the hand-layer directly.

I haven't read the complaint, but based on the description above it may also include a failure-to-apologize claim.

Full post as published by Lowering the Bar on March 10, 2009 (boomark / email).