On the stand during her trial for a skiing accident, actress Gwyneth Paltrow denies any responsibility

American actress Gwyneth Paltrow assured a US court on Friday March 24 that she was not responsible for the ski accident which earned her to be sued. Terry Sanderson, a retired optician, accuses the star of having injured him in this accident, seven years ago, and claims to have suffered damages estimated at more than 3 million dollars.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Oscar winner in 1999 for her role in Shakespeare in Love, filed a complaint in turn. The complainant assures that the actress ran over him while skiing in such a way “dangerous”, provoking “four broken ribs and permanent brain damage”, before fleeing, leaving him unconscious.

On March 24, for the fourth day of this trial in Utah (western United States), the actress denied any responsibility, stating that on the contrary, Terry Sanderson had “clearly hit on this ski slope”. The collision took place in February 2016 in Deer Valley, an upscale Rocky Mountain resort located above Park City, a tourist town that hosts the Sundance Film Festival.

“False Allegations”

Gwyneth Paltrow also explained that she briefly feared that it was a sexual assault. “I I was skiing and two skis appeared between my skis, pushing my legs apart, then a body pressed against me and I heard a very strange growl.” The actress said she wondered if it was a “joke” or if “someone was doing evil things”.

The actress, who has built a second career as a wellness guru with her Goop brand, admitted she left the scene of the crash because her ski instructor told her she could. Hearings will continue next week with testimony from Paltrow, Gwyneth Paltrow’s children and husband, and plaintiff Terry Sanderson.

Steven Owens, the actress’ lawyer, said in Park City Court that Terry Sanderson was “obsessed” by the complaint and that the record was based on “false allegations” at the start of the trial on March 21