Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Illinois

Not sure what to put here

A manager at a coffeshop for no reason took a spoon from the water flow-drain on the coffe bar & flicked water intensionally at my face, hitting my hair, eyes, entering my mouth & fell on my jacket. My mouth fell open because I could not believe that he did that. He said that it was only water & said that I should not have stood so close to the coffe bar. He also burnt the milk to make my drink & when my friend said something about it he said take your problem drink & have someone else make it. The water that was sprung at me in suprise also had milk & God knows what kind of bacteria living in it.

What bothers me is that can he get away with perposely flicking a spoon fool of water at me? I barely know him or speak to him, and If he does speak to me he is really nasty & condensending attitude towards me.

Can this be allowed & do I have a case maybe in assult?

Please let me know.

Sincerely,


Asked on 1/17/03, 8:16 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Kenneth J. Ashman Ashman Law Offices, LLC

Re: Not sure what to put here

You may very well have a tort claim against him and the restaurant -- whether for assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional harm, etc. Your problem, however, lies in the fact that you have suffered no serious damage as a result of his wrongdoing.

The question is not whether there "might" have been some sort of bacteria in the milk/water he flicked on you; rather, the question is whether you actually were contaminated with such bacteria, fell ill because of the same and are able to prove that the illness came directly from his actions. Absent proof of this nature, you would be suing him for, say, the cost of cleaning your jacket -- certainly not enough to warrant a lawsuit or retaining a lawyer.

-- Kenneth J. Ashman; www.AshmanLawOffices.com

This communication is intended for general informational purposes only and is not intended to create an attorney-client communication, which, under the policies of Ashman Law Offices, LLC, can only be created by execution of a formal retention agreement.

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Answered on 1/18/03, 11:52 am


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