Jury sides with 12-year-old whose aunt sued him for hugging too hard

 By 
Heather Dockray
 on 
Original image replaced with Mashable logo
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

America is in the midst of a silent hugging pandemic, and one woman has decided to stand up.

Jennifer Connell, a 54-year-old human resources manager in New York City, unsuccessfully sued her 12-year-old nephew after he reportedly hugged her too hard at his eighth birthday party in 2011. According to The Westport News, the boy jumped off his bicycle to greet his Aunt Jen with a hug, causing her to fall and break her wrist.

[seealso slug="shelter-dogs-hugging"]

PHOTO: Jennifer Connell, 54, leaving court after suing her 12-year-old nephew for wrist inj. She gets $0. pic.twitter.com/A8pWTMjFTA— Kevin Galliford (@KallMeKG) October 13, 2015

“There he was, flying at me,” Connell testified in superior court in Bridgeport, Connecticut. But a six-member jury on Tuesday sided with the nephew, Sean Tarala, according to a court document.

Connell sought $127,000 in damages from the boy, whose mother died last year. Although the lawsuit was filed in 2013, the case didn't get thrust into the media spotlight until this week.

And we'll end with this, another thing Connell actually said:  “I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate."

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