Injury Suffered at Taylor Swift Eras Tour Concert Sparks Lawsuit

Taylor Swift's acclaimed The Eras Tour is embroiled in a legal battle after a woman was injured at an August performance. Court documents obtained by The Blast show that a woman named Tonia Buell is seeking damages after she fell while posing in a RockStar energy drink photo booth.

This lawsuit was filed by Buell in L.A. County Courts against Pepsi and StadCo LA, LLC, seeking to sue the drink's owner and the venue for the concert. According to the concertgoer, the incident occurred on Aug. 8, 2023, at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, during Taylor's The Eras Tour.

Upon entering the main floor at 6:15 p.m., the woman and her daughter noticed a promotional area for "RockStar Recovery" energy drink, according to the lawsuit. She claims that, at the promotional area, attendees could sit on an orange swing and have their pictures taken at a photo booth.

The concertgoers described the swing as large enough to accommodate two adults and pointed out that it was suspended from the ground by two metal chains with two "eye" bolts attached to the seat.

"In turn, the 'eye; bolts were attached to either end of the seat at the central point between the front and back edges of the plank," she wrote. Because of this, she explains that the seat of the swing had a tendency to tilt (or teeter-totter) because the bolts were attached only to two points instead of attaching the chains to all four corners of the seat. 

Her attempt to sit on the swing resulted in her being "instantly thrown to the ground, striking her head and neck on the concrete floor." There was no padding or protective covering underneath the swing, she said.

As two employees came to her aid, the concert patron recalled being in "immediate and severe pain." She told them of the swing's "dangerous" design and asked if other people had fallen from it.

"The Rockstar Recovery employee stated that other people had sustained injuries from the swing in a similar fashion at other venues," the legal filing read. According to her, she immediately began to "bruise and swell" and then felt "dazed, nauseous, and confused."

Despite her best efforts, she wasn't able to take her seat at the concert because of the symptoms. The next day, when she went to the urgent care center to seek treatment for her injuries, she states that she was diagnosed with "concussion, scalp hematoma, and cervical sprain in her neck."

Although the incident occurred months ago, the female concertgoer claims in the lawsuit that she still suffers from symptoms of the traumatic brain injury she sustained, which has negatively affected her career. She has worked at the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Moreover, she claims that since suffering the injuries, she has not been able to "speak at conferences, give presentations, or perform other public outreach functions" that are integral to her job. In the lawsuit, the plaintiff is suing for "Negligence, Premises Liability, and Negligent Training." No specific amount was disclosed for damages.