Children skateboard. They skateboard a little crazy from time to time, challenging themselves and their friends by jumping down stairs, on handrails, performing X game moves. Broken bones, ankle fractures and the odd skull fracture are possible outcomes if a teenage daredevil decides to fly instead of roll.
Property owners, especially landlords of commercial buildings, may owe a duty to the skateboarders to keep the premises safe against such conduct and to warn away and caution repeated users to stop their activities.
Car Drivers may fail to keep safe lookout and drive cautiously in neighborhoods that they should expect have skateboarders, and skateboarders should be treated by the car drivers as if they are pedestrians in most jurisdictions.
If a child is hitching a ride on the back of a moving car, bus, or truck, the driver may have the legal duty to come to a reasonable stop, rather than to speed up or try to move their car side to side or brake forcefully.
If your child has been seriously injured while skateboarding, you should call me and explain what happened, and let me explain what your legal rights are.
A tip: Keep any protective gear, clothes, helmet and the skateboard. They are evidence.
