Gwyneth Paltrow’s accuser “grew sharply” after the US actress allegedly crashed into him on ski slopes, a court said.
Terry Sanderson, 76, showed “all the typical hallmarks” of someone who suffered a brain injury after the 2016 collision, according to radiologist Wendell Gibby, who carried out the tests on him.
Mr. Sanderson, a retired optometrist, is suing the Hollywood actress for claiming she seriously injured him while they were skiing at Deer Valley Resort in Utah.
PaltrowAged 50, he was “out of control” and displayed “reckless” and “dangerous” behavior when he punched him directly in the back which left him with brain damage, four broken ribs and other serious injuries, the court was told.
Terry Sanderson in court on Tuesday. photo: AP
She allegedly ‘fled’ the scene without saying a word and he is suing her for $300,000 (£245,000).
But Paltrow, who is also a lifestyle influencer, dismisses the claims, with her lawyer calling Mr Sanderson’s version of events “absolutely BS”.
Her legal team told jurors in the Utah town of Park City that Mr. Sanderson was the one who crashed into her — a collision in which she suffered what they called a “full body blow.”
Watch live: Gwyneth Paltrow in court over skiing accident lawsuit
Dr Gibby argued that it was “not plausible” that Mr Sanderson’s injuries would have been caused by crashing into Paltrow.
He told the court that Mr. Sanderson would “protect” himself if he hit his Paltrow on the head.
“I don’t think it would be plausible that if he ran into her he would have broken ribs on the side of his chest – he probably would have had his arms outstretched, he would have protected himself,” Dr Gibby said.
“Had he been the one to meet her, I don’t think she would have suffered this kind of injury.”
Dr Gibby also spoke about what Mr Sanderson was like before the 2016 incident, saying: “Terry was a high functioning, high energy person. He did many things every day.
“But after his accident he got sharply worse and a lot of the activities he used to do he stopped doing like dancing, mostly his skiing activities.
“His personal interactions with his children and grandchildren suffered and he had trouble multi-tasking… He would go to Home Depot and forget why he was there. These are all typical hallmarks of someone who has had an injury traumatic brain injury”.
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Craig Ramon was the first witness to testify.
To know more: “Paltrow never said a word after hitting another skier and running away”
Dr Gibby added: ‘In Terry’s case…he was a very respected guy, but I think he’s lost some of that connection. [He had] difficulty maintaining the friendships and relationships he used to have.
“I think the ability to function at a high level has been lost for Terry…many of the things that gave him pleasure in life seem to have been abruptly diminished by this injury.”
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Dr Gibby also told the court “the collision involved Terry at one point hitting an object hard enough to break his ribs and create a brain injury.”
He added, “Terry’s concussion was from hitting the ground and hitting his head.”
The hearing continues.
