Woman who hurt her ankle sues bar

A woman who tried to dance atop the bar at a Joliet tavern is suing theestablishment after she fell and shattered her ankle.
Amy Mueller – a Joliet-area resident in her early 20s, according to herattorney – is seeking more than $50,000 in damages in Will County CircuitCourt for her injuries at Samy’s Bar and Grill, 3131 Voyager Lane, on May 19,2006.
She fell while trying to climb up onto the bar and is suing Samy’s for”allowing [her] to climb upon the bar without a step-stool, ladder or otherdevice used for safety.”
“They encouraged their patrons to dance on the bar – they cajole them,they yell at them, but they fail to take any safety precautions whatsoever,”said Frank Cservenyak Jr., Mueller’s attorney.
“I wouldn’t take a case I believe is frivolous. She completely shatteredher right ankle. This isn’t, ‘I fell and bruised my back.’”
Cservenyak said an ambulance was called to Samy’s that night as Mueller layon the ground in pain. She has had three surgeries on her ankle, he said.
L. Barrett Bodach, the attorney representing the bar and its owners, saidthe lawsuit was the first anyone at the bar had heard of the incident.
Bodach has asked a judge to dismiss the case, arguing that any injuriessuffered by Mueller were her own fault.
“I’ve had a lot of cases that involve restaurants and bars, but I don’trecall anything like this – this is totally unusual,” he said.