LPOSD fighting negligence suit

SANDPOINT — The Lake Pend Oreille School District is challenging a lawsuit filed by the mother of a Sandpoint High School cheerleader who was injured by a falling gym mat in 2007.

The cheerleader was struck when teammates were pushing mats down from an upstairs loft where SHS wrestlers train. The cheerleader, then 15, was standing below and was slammed to the gymnasium floor, according to a civil complaint filed in 1st District Court.

The teen’s mother, Shelley Britzius, filed suit on behalf of her daughter last fall. It claims the cheerleading practice was negligently supervised and the district breached its duty to protect the teen from harm while at school.

The suit seeks damages for past and future medical and dental expenses, corrective and cosmetic surgery, permanent injury and lost wages.

The school district answered the civil complaint earlier this month. The district rejected the claims of negligence and argues third parties not in their control were at fault in the incident.