BENTON — A hunter from Georgia is suing a Randolph County hunting club after he allegedly fell while climbing down from a tree stand.
Richard Moss and Joanne Moss filed a complaint on Oct. 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois against Doering Kennels Inc., which does business as The Hunt Club, Ron Doering, Jill Doering, Julian Ramon, Greg Mueller and Millennium Outdoors Inc.
According to the complaint, Richard Moss paid The Hunt Club $3,000 to hunt deer from Oct. 3 to Oct. 7, 2016. On Oct. 4, 2016, he claims he was taken to a tree stand by Ramon and Mueller. The tree stand was approximately 25 feet high and was accessible by climbing sticks that were attached to the tree by straps. The climbing sticks and straps were manufactured by Millennium Outdoors.
After hunting, Moss attempted to climb down from the tree stand when the strap securing the top section of the climbing sticks to the tree snapped, causing him to fall 20 feet to the ground.
Moss suffered a compression fracture to his L3 and L4 vertebrae and sprains to his left knee, right elbow and right wrist, the complaint states. The also suffered an infection to his right foot.
The plaintiffs allege the defendants negligently failed to maintain the tree stand and climbing sticks.
The plaintiffs request a trial by jury and seek a judgment against the defendants in an amount in excess of $75,000. They are represented by Matthew C. Casey of Casey & Devoti PC in St. Louis.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois case number 3:18-cv-01784-NJR-RJD