Judge: Jury should hear condom choking case
Imagine watching a DVD of your child accidentally swallowing and choking on a used condom - every day. That's what Amy Wolfe, 31, of Pittsfield, Mass., said her life's been like ever since the real thing took place inside a Burlington County hotel two years ago, according to a federal complaint.
Imagine watching a DVD of your child accidentally swallowing and choking on a used condom - every day.
That's what Amy Wolfe, 31, of Pittsfield, Mass., said her life's been like ever since the real thing took place inside a Burlington County hotel two years ago, according to a federal complaint.
"I wish I never stayed at that hotel," Wolfe said during a deposition. "I wish we would have kept driving."
Last month, a U.S. district judge in Camden cited the case's "unique circumstances" and said that a jury should decide whether Wolfe suffered emotional distress as a bystander during the incident. Wolfe claims that she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and sees a psychiatrist as a result of the incident.
On the morning of Jan. 3, 2009, Wolfe and her three children were inside their room at the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Mount Laurel after driving back from Florida for the holidays. Her husband was out getting breakfast.
Wolfe said that her youngest son discovered a used condom, left in the room before the family checked in, and started choking on it after he swallowed it and its "contents." She was forced to remove the condom from his throat, she said in a deposition
Attorneys for Homewood Suites had contended that Wolfe could not claim emotional distress because the child did not suffer serious physical injury or death. The defense noted that Wolfe threw the condom out and did not seek immediate medical attention.
Although her son did not contract a sexually transmitted disease or other illnesses from the incident, the Wolfes claim that his developmental delays are a result of the "trauma" he suffered.
