CNN
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The Utah civil trial involving actress Gwyneth Paltrow and a man who accuses her of wrongdoing in connection with a 2016 ski collision resumed Monday for its second week of proceedings.
Terry Sanderson, the retired optometrist who is suing Paltrow, testified Monday that he “skied easily” and “was careful” before the collision with Paltrow, which happened at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah.
“I just remember everything was great and then I heard something I had never heard at a ski resort and it was a bloodcurdling scream…and then boom,” he said. -he declares. “It felt like someone was out of control and was going to hit a tree and die. And that’s what I had until I got hit.
He went on to describe the impact.
“I got hit in the back so hard and right at my shoulder blades and felt like it was perfectly centered and the fists and poles were right at the bottom of my shoulder blades, serious, serious and I’ve never been hit so hard,” Sanderson continued. “All I saw was a lot of snow.”
Sanderson disputed suggestions that he sued Paltrow to exploit his fame and wealth.
“I was like, ‘I’m not a fan of celebrities,'” Sanderson told the jury upon learning that she was the other skier involved in their collision.
Craig Ramon, a witness who testified previously, was called back to the stand to discuss newly obtained evidence from a bulletin board earlier Monday.
The attorneys said Friday that following Sanderson’s testimony, the case would be turned over to Paltrow’s attorneys to present their defense.
Television producer Brad Falchuck, Paltrow’s husband, and her children Apple Martin and Moses Martin were due to testify on Monday, but procedural delays could change plans.
After a lunch break, Deer Valley Resort ski instructor Eric Christiansen began his testimony.
Christiansen testified that he saw the onset and immediate aftermath of the collision, including Sanderson’s condition after the collision. Christiansen said he did not observe that Sanderson was unconscious.
He said he heard Sanderson apologize to Paltrow twice and tell Christiansen that Paltrow “just appeared in front of me” when Christiansen asked Sanderson if he was okay.
Christiansen said he did not witness the actual collision.
Later that day, the jury heard from Ski Patrol member Whitney Smith, who responded to the incident between Paltrow and Sanderson.
Paltrow, who has been in the Utah courtroom since the trial began last Tuesday, took the stand Friday to testify.
Sanderson, 76, accused Paltrow of ramming him and causing him lasting injuries and brain damage while they were both skiing on a beginner’s slope on a mountain in Utah. Sanderson also claims that Paltrow and his ski instructor skied after the incident without getting him treatment.
Paltrow filed a countersuit against Sanderson in 2019, claiming he skied into her.
The two have been in a legal battle for seven years.
In about two hours of testimony Friday, Paltrow repeated her claim that Sanderson skied directly into her back and caused the collision while being questioned by Sanderson’s attorney, Kristin A. VanOrman.
Paltrow said the collision happened on the first day of a trip to Deer Valley Resort where she was with her two children, then boyfriend Falchuck and her two children.
She testified that two skis came between her skis, forcing her legs apart and that she heard a “grunting noise” when she felt a body pressing against her back before they slid away. crush together.
Paltrow said she didn’t ask about Sanderson’s condition after their collision, but said she was on the mountain “long enough for him to say he was fine” and survey.
Sanderson originally sued Paltrow for $3.1 million, but later amended his suit and is now seeking more than $300,000 in damages, according to court documents.
Paltrow seeks $1 in damages, plus attorney’s fees.
Prior to Paltrow’s testimony, a series of witnesses testified, including Sanderon’s daughters Polly Sanderson Grasham and Shae Sanderson Herath, and Sanderson’s friends Mark Herath and Craig Ramon.
The jury also heard from a number of expert witnesses.
Cnn
