Ii. [§ 3.2] Battery

• Jurisdiction: Maryland

II. [§ 3.2] BATTERY

John Smith injured his back when George Harris pulled a chair out from under him as he was about to sit down. As a result, Smith sued Harris for battery.

COMPLAINT

Battery

John Smith (hereinafter "Smith"), Plaintiff, by his attorneys, Liam P. Murphy and Murphy & Murphy, P.A., sues Michelle Harris (hereinafter "Harris"), Defendant, and states as follows:

1. Plaintiff Smith is a resident of Baltimore City, Maryland. At all times relevant hereto, he was employed as a third-grade teacher at Kellum School.

2. Defendant Harris is a resident of Baltimore City, Maryland. At all times relevant hereto, she was the Vice-Principal of Kellum School.

3. On or about June 7, 2021, Defendant Harris entered the classroom where Plaintiff Smith was teaching. Defendant Harris intended to retaliate against Smith for filing a complaint against her the previous day.

4. Defendant Harris observed Smith returning to his seat, although Smith did not see Harris. As Smith began to sit down, Harris quietly approached Smith from the rear and pulled away his chair.

5. Plaintiff Smith fell backward onto the floor, violently striking his back and head on the floor.

6. Defendant Harris's conduct constituted an intentional touching (or the setting in motion of an event, which resulted in the offensive, non-consensual touching) of Plaintiff Smith by Defendant Harris, and was undertaken deliberately and with actual malice.

7. As a result of Defendant Harris's conduct, Plaintiff Smith suffered substantial damages, including, but not limited to, extreme and permanent pain and suffering, permanent and debilitating injury to his back and neck, humiliation, mental distress, and monetary losses.

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff Smith demands judgment against Defendant Harris in excess of Seventy-Five Thousand Dollars ($75,000) in compensatory and punitive damages, with interest and costs.
Liam P. Murphy

__________
AIS No. 0123456789
Murphy & Murphy, P.A.
Transamerica Building
100 Light Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21202
Phone: (410) 555-1234
Fax: (410) 555-1235
Email: HQ@QuinnLaw.com

Attorneys for Plaintiff

COMMENT

A complaint for battery must allege an intentional, unpermitted touching of the body of another that is harmful or offensive to the person who was touched. Hendrix v. Burnes, 205 Md. App. 1, 19-21, 43 A.3d 415, 427, cert. denied, 427 Md. 608, 50 A.3d 607 (2012); MPJI-Cv. 15:2. "It is clear that '[a] person can use an automobile or other vehicle to intentionally hit another person,' but in order for that to constitute civil battery, the element of intent must be present." Beall v. Holloway-Johnson, 446 Md. 48, 66, 130 A.3d 406, 416-17 (2016) (citing Hendrix v. Burnes, 205 Md. App. 1, 22, 43 A.3d 415, 428 (2012)).

"A battery occurs when one intends a harmful or offensive contact with another without that person's consent." Nelson v. Carroll, 355 Md. 593, 600, 735 A.2d 1096, 1099 (1999); see also White Pine Ins. Co. v. Taylor, 233 Md. App. 479, 504, 165 A.3d 624, 638 (2017). "The intent element of battery requires not a specific desire to bring about a certain result, but rather a general intent to unlawfully invade another's physical well-being through a harmful or offensive contact or an apprehension of such a contact." Id. at 602-03, 735 A.2d at 1101. Thus, while "a purely accidental touching, or one caused by mere inadvertence, is not enough to establish the intent requirement for battery," Id. at 602, 735 A.2d at 1100, "the intent required is not a specific intent to cause the type...