Penn State University, Football Player Sued for Electric Scooter Accident That Injured Child

The lawsuit says Penn State was negligent for not enforcing its campus ban on e-scooters.

A general view of a Penn State University sign outside of Beaver Stadium. / Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Penn State University and a Penn State football player are being sued for negligence following an incident in which the player struck a child while riding an electric scooter on campus, causing injuries.

According to the lawsuit, De'Andre Cook, a freshman on the Penn State football team, was riding an electric scooter on the Penn State campus in February when he struck a child who was crossing North Burrowes Street with his father. The child, then 6 years old, sustained two pelvic fractures, a broken foot and head injuries that required four staples, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed in Centre County Court by the child's father Shane Richard, says that the child has undergone and may face further medical treatments. It also says the child has suffered or might face "severe pain, anxiety, depression, emotional distress, humiliation, loss of pleasures and enjoyment of life and/or a serious impairment ofone or more bodily functions." The suit claims that the child "in no manner contributed" to the crash or the injuries.

Cook, listed on Penn State's football roster as a 6-4, 282-pound defensive lineman, pled guilty in March to summary charges of failing to yield to pedestrians and failing to stop at a stop sign and paid a fine of $238, according to online court records.

The lawsuit includes one count of negligence against Penn State for failing to enforce its campus ban on electric scooters and one count of negligence against Cook for causing the crash while operating the scooter. The plaintiff seeks at least $100,000 in total damages, according to the lawsuit.

In the lawsuit, attorney Richard Godshall cites a Penn State University policy that bans the campus use of motorized devices, such as e-scooters, "that do not meet the PA Vehicle Code requirements for operation on a public highway." The policy states that such devices "are prohibited from use on University property; to include buildings, roadways, sidewalks, bike paths and shared pathways." According to the lawsuit, the model of electric scooter that Cook was riding "is not authorized for use on public roadways in Pennsylvania."

The lawsuit states that Penn State provided Cook with the electric scooter. It further states that Penn State violated its policies to "promote favoritism" among student-athletes and failed to train student- athletes to operate electric scooters safely.

"Despite recognizing the hazards posed by e-scooters on campus, and despite acknowledging that they do not meet the PA Vehicle Code requirements for operation on public highways, Defendant Penn State nevertheless provides student-athletes, and only student-athletes, the option to utilize this high-speed transport option," the lawsuit states. "The special favoritism provided by Defendant Penn State to student-athletes such as Defendant Cook foreseeably and directly resulted in the serious injuries to" the child.

Penn State does not comment on pending litigation.

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