So, what exactly do horse poop and personal injury lawyers have in common?

You might think this is the start of a joke, but it is not. One of the most important legal precedents in U.S. history has to do with a horse "evacuating its bowels" on a spectator at a circus.

In 1927, the Superior Court in Georgia awarded Ms. Turnage damages due to "mental suffering, embarrassment, and mortification," even though she was not physically injured. This is the first time a court did such a thing.

Here is what happened: Ms. Turnage was in the front row at the Christy Brothers Circus, watching a dancing horse performance. In the course of the routine, one of the horses backed up to her and "evacuated its bowels onto her lap, in full view of many people, including circus employees, who all laughed at the occurrence."

I have to admit, if I had been at that circus, I would have laughed too. Even if I were the owner of the circus, I don't think I could have stopped myself from laughing at the site of a horse pooping on someone. But, the Randolph Superior Court was convinced that Ms. Turnage had experienced mental suffering from the incident and awarded her monetary damages.

What makes this case unique (from a legal perspective, not from a humorous perspective) is that it set a precedent for an untold number of future civil cases. A person does not need to be physically harmed in order to be deemed "harmed" and owed damages. Ms. Turnage was not physically hurt at all in the incident, but the Court thought she was still harmed emotionally. Personal injury attorneys who argue that their clients suffered depression, anxiety, or other emotional problems related to the actions of others have Christy Brothers v. Turnage to thank for their legal arguments.

In 1928, the Appeals Court in Georgia affirmed the decision of the trial court in favor of Ms. Turnage, and the Supreme Court refused to hear the case.



Reference:

Christy Brothers Circus v. Turnage  38 Ga. App. 581; 144 S.E. 680 ; 1928 Ga. App. LEXIS 343