Sports mascots are supposed to make going to a game a more enjoyable experience, but one Chicago mascot is reportedly in hot water and facing a lawsuit because of his antics.
That mascot, Benny the Bull, is being sued because of his actions during a 2015 playoff game.
51-year old Rose Garcia, who worked at the United Center at the time of the game, is suing Barry F. Anderson, the man who until 2016 played the role of Benny at games, in excess of $50,000 in damages in connection with the incident.
Chicago Bulls Limited Partnership and Chicago Professinoal Sports Limited Partnership were also named in the lawsuit.
Here’s the Chicago Tribune report on the suit:
During a break in the action, former Benny mascot Barry Anderson “was running out of control on the court when he injured his ankle,” Garcia alleges. Anderson was limping off the court with help from someone else when he pressed his fuzzy red hand on Garcia’s left shoulder and bore down with his full body weight, according to the personal injury lawsuit filed Monday in Cook County Circuit Court.
Garcia, who was then taking an order, “immediately felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder and heard a popping sound in the same,” the lawsuit alleges. The rotator cuff in her left shoulder was torn, (attorney Lucy) Vazquez said.
Garcia then felt a sharp pain in her shoulder and heard a popping sound, according to the suit. As a result, she suffered “injuries of a personal and pecuniary nature” and required medical assistance.
Anderson, who retired before the 2016-17 season, has been in trouble before. He was sued in 2008 by a Naperville dentist who alleged that a “high-five gone awry” led to a torn biceps injury at a game. The suit was settled in 2010, according to Yahoo! Sports.