Gwyneth Paltrow’s claim fellow skier crashed into her not ‘plausible’ because of accuser’s injuries, court told | Ents & Arts News

The injuries suffered by Gwyneth Paltrow’s accuser could not “plausibly” have been caused by him crashing into her, a US court has been told.

Terry Sanderson, 76, showed “typical hallmarks” of a traumatic brain injury and “deteriorated abruptly” following the 2016 incident on the slopes of the Deer Valley Resort in Utah, according to a radiologist.

Mr Sanderson, a retired optometrist, is suing the Hollywood star for $300,000 (£245,000) after she allegedly “slammed” into him from behind, leaving him unresponsive with several broken ribs and brain damage.

She also allegedly “bolted” from the scene without saying a word.

But 50-year-old Paltrow, who is also a lifestyle influencer, rejects the claims, with her lawyer calling Mr Sanderson’s version of events “utter BS”.

Her legal team has told jurors in the Utah town of Park City that Mr Sanderson was the one who crashed into her during her family holiday – a collision in which she sustained what they called a “full body blow”.

On the second day of the court case, radiologist Dr Wendell Gibby, who examined Mr Sanderson in the aftermath of the crash, said he would have “protected himself” if he had collided with Paltrow head on.

“I think it’s very unlikely that this would have been caused by Terry running into Gwyneth Paltrow,” he said.

“I don’t think it would be plausible that if he were running into her he would have broken the ribs on the side of his chest – he likely would have had his arms extended, he would have protected himself.

“Had he been the person running into her, I don’t think he would have sustained these types of injuries.”

“The rib fractures certainly corroborate that there was enough force to cause a head injury,” Dr Gibby testified.

‘Terry Sanderson was a high-energy person before collision’

In court, the radiologist also talked about what Mr Sanderson was like before the 2016 incident, saying: “Terry had been a very high-functioning, high-energy person. Every day he was doing lots of things.

“But after his accident he deteriorated abruptly and many of the activities he used to do he stopped doing like dancing, for the most part, his skiing activities.

“His personal interactions with his children and grandchildren suffered and he had trouble multi-tasking… He would go to Home Depot and forget why he was there. Those are all typical hallmarks of someone who has had a traumatic brain injury.”

Read more: ‘Paltrow never said a word after hitting fellow skier and bolting’

Dr Gibby added: “In Terry’s case… he was a well-respected guy, but I think he lost some of that connectedness. [He had] difficulty in maintaining friendships and the relationships that he had.

“I think that the ability to function at a high level was lost for Terry… many of the things that gave him pleasure in life seem to have been abruptly diminished by this injury.”

The hearing continues.

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