ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A Fulton County jury is being asked to decide if a cannon blast at an American Legion parade in Alpharetta caused a Roswell teen to lose her hearing.
Family: Cannon Blast Destroyed Teen's Hearing
Brittany Giles and her family are suing organizers of the 2007 Alpharetta Old Soldier's Day Parade, including the city of Alpharetta, for the incident they believe left her with a hearing impairment.
Giles testified Tuesday that she was preparing to walk the parade route as a member of the Roswell High School Marching Band, when someone from Pulaski Battery fired off the Civil War era cannon just feet from where she was standing.
"I was shocked," she testified. "It felt like a 50 pound weight on my ear drums."
Giles testified she complained to her parents that her ears were bothering her but on cross-examination admitted she didn't seek medical attention for several weeks because she had a previously scheduled appointment and didn't feel she needed to see a doctor sooner.
Giles testified her doctor noted she had extreme hearing loss due to an acoustic trauma and agreed the cannon blast was the likely cause.
Since the incident, Giles testified, she has had to wear hearing aids, had to quit the band because loud noises bother her, and that she has suffered ridicule at the hands of classmates.
When questioned by defendants' attorneys, Giles admitted she believed the cannon blast was accidental and that nobody meant to harm her with it.
Alpharetta City Administrator Robert Regus testified the city helped organize the parade but that the American Legion personnel were in charge of the details. He testified the city hadn't received any complaints from other parade-goers that the cannon blast caused them any problems.
An event planner for the city of Alpharetta testified she also never received any complaints from spectators about the loud noises.
"When you go to events and parades, you're gonna have noise," said Kim Dodson.
Pediatric ear, nose and throat Dr. James Thomsen testified that he treated Giles in the years before the incident, with her last appointment being in January 2005. Thomsen testified that, at that time, Giles showed no signs of a hearing loss.
A judge directed attorneys for both sides not to speak with the media until the trial had ended. They expected proceedings to last through the rest of the week.
WSBTV
