YouTuber Sued After Brutal Unprovoked Assault
YouTuber Vitaly Zdorovetskiy is being charged with felony aggravated battery after an assault at Miami Beach left a woman with serious injuries to her face. The woman says that Zdorovetskiy leapt out of the bushes and attacked her, tackling her from behind and then proceeding to punch her in the face. The woman has now filed a civil lawsuit against Zdorovetskiy seeking damages for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost time at work. For an intentional assault, she will likely also be looking for punitive damages.
Zdorovetskiy is an internet-famous YouTuber and influencer with over 10 million subscribers on YouTube. He has made a career out of staging outlandish pranks. In 2012, shortly after a Florida man attempted to chew the face off of another Florida man, Zdorovetskiy dressed up as a zombie and traveled around some of Miami’s poorest neighborhoods to scare residents. That video had been viewed over 30 million times.
Other Run-Ins With the Law
Zdorovetskiy was charged with threatening to detonate a bomb after a YouTube prank caught the attention of Boca Raton police. Zdorovetskiy left a briefcase on the ground near a target and told them that the briefcase had a bomb in it and they had 60 seconds to get away. After it was revealed that this was just an elaborate prank, the man attacked Zdorovetskiy and his cameraman leading to charges that carried a maximum 15-year penalty in the State of Florida.
Zdorovetskiy seems to always bridge the gap between objectionable and illegal. However, jumping out of the bushes and physically assaulting a woman is more than just objectionable and very illegal.
Proving an Intentional Tort
Not all personal injury cases involve accidents. Some of them involve intentional malice committed by one person against another. A well-known example would be the second OJ Simpson trial in which the victim’s families sued Simpson and won.
Proving an intentional tort is no different than proving a criminal case. However, one notable difference is that the standard of proof in a criminal trial is much higher than the standard of proof in a civil one. A plaintiff would only need to prove their case by a preponderance of the evidence. A prosecutor needs to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Depending on how the criminal case plays out, the path to a victory in civil court can be quite smooth. If the criminal court finds in favor of the prosecution and Zdorovetskiy ends up behind bars, then the verdict can be used against them in a civil court where the standard of proof is lower. Meanwhile, a not guilty verdict in criminal court won’t hurt their chances in a civil case.
Talk to a Miami Personal Injury Attorney Today
If you’ve been assaulted by a YouTuber or otherwise injured by an act of negligence or malice, call the Miami personal injury attorneys at the office of Alan Goldfarb, P.A. to set up a free case evaluation.
Resource:
tmz.com/2020/05/15/youtube-star-vitaly-alleged-victim-injury-photos-sued-assault/
https://www.goldfarbpa.com/florida-woman-sues-rapper-after-he-slapped-her-at-show/
