Sisters Rodeo Bull Lawsuit , Party Bus the Bull Jumped the Fence — Now There’s an $11.5 Million Legal Battle

A summer rodeo has long been an integral part of the community’s culture in Sisters, Oregon, a hamlet situated at the eastern base of the Cascades. Every June, both locals and visitors flock to the arena, where children press up against the fence rails to get a better glimpse at the bulls and the scent of popcorn and animals blends in the evening air. That well-known scene became something no one had anticipated on June 8, 2024.

When the action was taking place on the other side of the arena fence, people were standing, strolling, purchasing food, and engaging in the typical activities that people do at a summer rodeo. Party Bus, a bull that seemed to be living up to whatever spirit his name was chosen to capture, cleared the fence and landed in the concessions area.

The video became viral. It is the type of video that spreads quickly online and remains in circulation long after the immediate news cycle has passed because of the combination of visual drama, auditory audience reaction, and the sheer unexpectedness of a bull in a concessions area. The physical reality for those in the bull’s path when it landed—the injuries, the medical appointments, the months of recuperation, and, for at least one person, the career disruption that followed a broken arm and shoulder in a profession that depends on physical capability—was not fully captured in the viral footage.

Two lawsuits totaling more than $11.5 million have been filed by two of the injured onlookers two years after the incident. Kristin Wert is suing the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, Sisters Rodeo, Corey & Lange Rodeo Co., and a number of other defendants, including contractors in charge of arena upkeep and a veterinarian hired to guarantee the safe handling of rodeo animals, for $2.3 million.

The complaint details her injuries, including those to her arms, shoulders, and legs, as well as a concussion that has resulted in ongoing migraines, nausea, and dizziness, as well as the accompanying emotional distress. Andrew, her husband, is also named as a plaintiff. According to the complaint, he witnessed the occurrence and suffered severe psychological and emotional stress as a result.

The larger dollar amount, $9.25 million, in Allison Hickey’s lawsuit is accompanied by an allegation that adds a dimension not present in the Wert complaint: that the Sisters Rodeo made money off of the viral video of Party Bus’s escape by selling merchandise and using the incident for marketing and advertising in the years following it.

The bull approached and landed on Hickey while she was strolling around the arena fence. At the time, she was 26 years old and employed as a physical therapist, a profession where injuries to the arms and shoulders pose a direct risk to one’s ability to do their duties. This reality is reflected in the economic damages section of her claim, which seeks compensation for the effects of injuries on her career that happened at a time she could not have reasonably predicted or prevented.

Instead than describing a single breach, the negligence charges in both complaints detail a series of failures. The lawsuits contend that the defendants failed to ensure that the bull was in a safe and healthy condition before the event, failed to keep Party Bus appropriately contained, failed to maintain a safe environment for spectators, and—most importantly—failed to have any warning system in place that might have alerted those in the concessions area that an animal was approaching the fence.

The lack of a warning system in a location where livestock escapes, even though they are uncommon, are a recognized category of risk is the kind of gap that negligence claims are built upon. This final point has particular weight in personal injury lawsuits.