Both sides in the Bryan Stow civil trial made their final arguments Thursday and now the case is in the hands of the jury. Gordon Tokumatsu reports for NBC4 News at 5 p.m. from outside the courthouse in downtown Los Angeles Thursday, June 26, 2014.
Jurors would be called on Thursday to decide whether the Dodgers organization was liable for the brutal beating of San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow, who suffered permanent brain damage on opening day in March 2011.
Stow’s attorneys have alleged throughout the month-long civil trial that former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and the organization did not provide enough security to prevent the attack during the rivalry game.
- Bryan Stow Case: Timeline, Video, Court Coverage
On Thursday, Stow's lawyer said security operations at the park that night was virtually non-existent.
"The budget, basically, is 64 cents for every person that goes in there...it costs $10 to park your car,” Tom Girardi said. "There’s no protection in Lot 2 in any way, shape or form from anybody.”
The Dodgers have contended that the security staffing for the game was larger than ever and that the attack could not have been prevented.
“Budgets went up every year,” defense attorney Dana Fox said. He also argued that the security budget statistic wasn't comparable to anything, and that it might actually fall in line with industry standards.
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Fox reminded the jury that they had to find that the organization was completely negligent in allowing the beating to take place.
“They would then have to convince you that nothing the Dodgers did was reasonable,” Fox said.
The defense also alluded to Stow’s blood-alcohol content, which was almost twice the legal limit, as a possible factor in the assault.
The last witness for the defense, former vice president of Dodgers security Ramon Mayterena, said in his testimony preceeding the closing arguments that the organization was in disarray and security had little experience with handling large crowds.
Noticeably absent from the closing arguments was Stow, who had been front and center in court on Wednesday, giving jurors another glimpse at the scars he suffered from having part of his skull temporarily removed.
His attorney’s have estimated that his lifetime care could cost upwards of $35 to $50 million.
The conclusion of the legal battle comes about four months after Louie Sanchez and Marvin Norwood were convicted of the assault. Sanchez was sentenced to eight years in prison and Norwood was sentenced to serve four years behind bars.
Jurors were expected to deliberate after lawyers from both sides gave hammered home their views on who’s to blame.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
