GARY, Ind. (Bluefield Daily Telegraph) — The Indiana Supreme Court has ruled against a lawsuit filed by a West Virginia delegate over a 2006 parking lot brawl that left him blind. Del. Eric Porterfield had his eyes gouged in a fight at Cavanaugh’s Sports Bar & Eatery, near Gary, Indiana.
The lawsuit said Cavanaugh's had an obligation to protects its patrons, especially because of past fights. The Supreme Court disagreed in a 3-2 vote.
The judgement says the fight wasn't foreseeable considering patrons showed no animosity toward Porterfield prior to the fight.
Porterfield was elected to the House of Delegates in 2018. He drew heavy criticism last year for repeated homophobic language.