Ducks, General Manager Bob Murray named in lawsuit

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A Michigan woman is suing the Ducks and their general manager, Bob Murray, for injuries she said she suffered last year at Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena during the Ducks’ Game 7 loss to the Red Wings in the second round of the playoffs.

Rachel Paris, 55, was working as a TV stage manager for the May 14 game and the next day was quoted as saying that ‘an upset and angry’ Murray hit her with a chair in the press box. News of the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in Michigan, was first reported by TMZ.com.

Paris, who is asking for more than $75,000 in damages, also names the team in the lawsuit because ‘they had a duty to ensure that proper measures and protocols were in place to help curtail Bob Murray’s violent and aggressive nature.’

At the time of the incident, Detroit police interviewed Murray but did not charge him. She was hit in the left chest, arm and shoulder.

The day after the incident, MyFoxDetroit.com, which is affiliated with Detroit TV station WJBK, quoted Paris as saying Murray was venting his frustration because she had been openly rooting for the Red Wings. ‘I was taken to the boards by Bob Murray and survived the hit,’ she told the website. ‘I felt like I was cross-checked and I didn’t even have the puck.’

She declined to file a formal complaint and Murray denied throwing the chair at Paris. ‘It was a complete accident,’ he told The Times the next day. ‘I’ve spoken with her and cleared it all up.’

There was no immediate comment Thursday from the Ducks.

-- Debbie Goffa