The organizers of a rodeo where a man was fatally struck by a bull in a “ring of fear” competition may be liable for his death if they intentionally provoked the animal to attack him, the Kentucky Court of Appeals has ruled.

Charles Davis, 47, volunteered for the competition and signed a liability waiver before he entered the rodeo ring. But the appeals court's decision to revive his widow's wrongful-death suit is another indication that waivers may not be much protection for organizers of endurance contests.

“Ring of fear” contests require participants to stand in marked circles as a bull with no horns is released into the rodeo ring. The last person standing in a circle wins a prize.

At the Grant County (Ky.) Fair in September 2004, Davis was one of those who competed for a whopping $50 prize. He died after a bull named Kenny slammed into his torso, causing his liver to burst, and Susan Davis sued the fair and the owners of the 3 Bar F Rodeo Tour.

The waiver signed by Charles Davis covered “all claims and liability arising out of strict liability or ordinary negligence.” But Susan Davis claims a rodeo worker was grossly negligent in jabbing Kenny with a wooden object and beating sticks against his cage before he was sent into the ring.

In a Nov. 2 ruling, the appeals court said the widow could go to trial, reversing a trial judge who summarily dismissed the case. “[T]here is no language that releases Appellees from conduct that would constitute gross negligence,” Judge Thomas B. Wine wrote for the court.

“The release contemplates getting into the ring with a bull and even mentions that rodeo animals are unpredictable,” he continued. “However, the release does not contemplate a bull that has been infuriated by the Appellees prior to its release into the ring.”

Wine also noted there are triable issues as to whether Charles Davis was offered a protective vest and had an opportunity to read the release before signing it. Under comparative negligence, he said, a jury “could also consider Charles’s own conduct in contributing to his death.”

Susan Davis has said her husband was not a daredevil and that she brought the case to publicize the dangers of a contest which has been promoted as a game of chance. “It's too dangerous,” she told the Kentucky Post. “It's just not a game.”

According to coroner's officials, Charles Davis had cirrhosis of the liver, which contributed to the fatal impact of the bull. But the appellate decision makes no reference to his health.

Other recent suits against endurance contest organizers have involved the death of California woman in a radio station's water-drinking competition and of a Texas man in an auto dealership's “Hands on a Hardbody” promotion.

By Matthew Heller
11/6/07