Gwyneth Paltrow’s accuser takes a stand, says ski crash was ‘severe blow’

Park City, Utah (KTVX) – The fifth day of the ski accident case against Gwyneth Paltrow continues this morning, with plaintiff Terry Sanderson standing up to discuss his views and his physical and mental health since the incident.

Sanderson is suing Paltrow for a 2016 ski crash at a Utah ski resort.He’s demanding over $300,000, alleging that Paltrow caused the crash. Contrary to what Paltrow testified last week.

The 76-year-old retired optometrist’s testimony Monday comes just minutes after a court revealed that viewers in the incident were finally able to access an Internet link believed to hold GoPro footage of the crash. I was. The jury was informed of the potential footage, and both the plaintiff and the defense agreed that the content was “genuine,” but it was never played for the jury or the public. , the other content behind the link was also unavailable.

Sanderson has long held to the idea that someone on the slopes at Deer Valley Resort must have had a running camera while on the slopes on the day of the crash. Both legal teams had access to the links for some time, but neither had access to the data behind the links until this week.

Sanderson wasn’t in court for most of the trial, except on Friday when he attended while Paltrow was in the stands. Sanderson’s attorney, Christine Van Orman, asked several questions about his relationship with his daughters. But the two mostly talked about the crash itself.

According to Sanderson, he was meeting with a semi-regular group of friends to ski at Deer Valley Resort. Despite being a lifelong skier and describing himself as an “advanced-intermediate”, he had never been to a resort until that day.

Sanderson testified that he and his group started the resort’s bandana run on the way to another run they wanted to try. He testified that he saw at least two large signs instructing skiers to slow down, and said he did.

Shortly after starting, however, Sanderson said there was no one ahead of him. Instead, he heard a “bloody” cry behind him.

“It was like someone was going out of control, hitting a tree and dying,” Sanderson testified. “I was like, ‘Oh my god, somebody got out of control.'”

He was then hit hard from behind, felt fists and poles in his upper back, and said he “flew.”

He called the clash “a serious blow”.

Sanderson said he tried to turn as far to the right as he could to avoid getting caught by other skiers in the fall, but he landed and passed out. When asked if anyone landed on him, he said he was out so he didn’t know. It was unclear how long he had been unconscious.

Sanderson testified that he slowly woke up and was terrified and unable to move. Out of fear, Sanderson tried to mutter that he was sorry, hoping the man would leave him alone. His skis remained after the crash, he said.

“I knew I needed to appease this guy,” Sanderson said. “If he wants to jump on me now, he can get rid of me.” He added that he didn’t know who the man was. He also said he had no recollection of the woman yelling at him, but Paltrow testified Friday that she yelled at Sanderson as he lay on the ground after the crash.

Sanderson said he had “purple throbbing pains” from his ribs and felt like his brain was under novocaine. Eventually, he said he was “grabbed and cramped” but said he wasn’t ready to stand up. Because of this, he felt defenseless and was unable to finish the run on his own.

Since the crash, Sanderson has testified that he had trouble communicating with people and noticed a change in his personality. He said he got lost trying to drive home from a volunteer event at least twice. He now needs a map to drive and he feels he has lost his “visual memory” such as the landmarks he uses in trying to get home.

He testified that he now stays at home as a “self-imposed withdrawal” who lacks confidence and is uneasy about traveling alone, and that his personality change caused the breakdown of the relationship.

The defense asked Sanderson several questions, but agreed that most of the cross-examination would be moved to another date because the other witnesses were only in town for a short time. I plan to run for office again before the trial is over.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.