Background
Twelve-year-old A.M. attended Busch Gardens’ Howl-O-Scream event with his mother and a friend. Around midnight, the boys entered the Stanleyville Theater through a closed but unlocked door while no show was underway. A.M. went onto the elevated stage, climbed onto a four-foot-high professional circus trampoline, jumped on it, and attempted to dismount by leaping into the air. He landed face-first on the ground below the stage and suffered serious, permanent internal injuries.
A.M.’s mother sued Busch Gardens for premises liability. The evidence showed that park warning signs prohibited touching sets or props and horseplay; A.M. admitted he knew he should not have been on the stage or trampoline. The jury found Busch Gardens 65% at fault, A.M. 25% at fault, and his mother 10% at fault, resulting in a $5.3 million damages judgment after comparative-negligence reductions. The court later awarded $375,000 in fees and costs based on an unaccepted settlement proposal.
The Court’s Holding
The Second District reversed and directed entry of judgment for Busch Gardens. Although A.M. was a business invitee when he entered the park and could enter the theater, he exceeded the scope of the invitation when he went onto the performance stage and climbed onto the professional trampoline for horseplay. At that point, he was at most an uninvited licensee; the court did not need to decide whether he was instead a trespasser.
Busch Gardens therefore owed A.M. only the duty to avoid willful or wanton harm and, upon discovering his presence, to warn of known dangers not open to ordinary observation. No evidence supported a breach of that limited duty: Busch Gardens had no knowledge that A.M. was on the stage or trampoline until months later, and no evidence showed willful or wanton conduct. The trial court erred by treating A.M. as an invitee as a matter of law and denying Busch Gardens’ directed-verdict and judgment-notwithstanding-the-verdict motions. Reversal of the damages judgment also required reversal of the fee-and-cost award dependent on it.
Key Takeaways
- A patron may lose business-invitee status by entering or using an area outside the scope of the property’s invitation.
- A ticket to an amusement event did not invite a child to use an elevated performance stage or professional circus trampoline for horseplay.
- Without evidence of willful or wanton harm, or knowledge of the entrant’s presence requiring a warning, a landowner is not liable under the duty owed to an uninvited licensee or trespasser.
Why It Matters
The decision emphasizes that premises-liability duties turn on the visitor’s status at the time of injury, not solely on the visitor’s initial status upon entering a business. A business owner’s general invitation to patrons can be limited to intended areas and uses.
It also confirms that a fee award based on a damages judgment cannot stand once the underlying judgment is reversed.