The parent company of St. Elmo Steak House, Huse Culinary Inc., has been named as a defendant in a lawsuit following an incident involving former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez. On October 4, altercation erupted between Sanchez and Perry Tole, a 69-year-old employee of a cooking oil recycling company, resulting in both men sustaining injuries.
Reports by FOX59 and NBC Sports indicate that the altercation allegedly began after Sanchez, who had been served alcohol at Huse Culinary's establishment, became involved in an argument with Tole over a parking space. Subsequent to the dispute, Tole used pepper spray and then stabbed Sanchez to temporarily fend off the attack. Attempts of the lawsuit are to hold Huse Culinary accountable for negligence under the Indiana Dram Shop Act, alleging the company failed in its duty to not serve alcohol to an already visibly impaired individual.
Sanchez, who was in town to announce a Colts game for Fox Corporation, is to face criminal charges in court. "The group finished dinner and left the restaurant together shortly before 9 p.m. Huse Culinary prides itself on providing an excellent customer experience and our team conducted themselves exactly as we expect," a Huse Culinary spokesperson said in a statement obtained by FOX59, denying the allegations in the complaint.
The addition of Huse Culinary to the civil lawsuit suggests a widening of legal scrutiny and potential liability. As detailed by IndyStar, Tole's legal team is looking to possibly ensure that Sanchez and the companies involved in the evening's events are held accountable. Ironically, it could now lead to the defendants, in a rush, to begin pointing fingers at each other in an attempt to mitigate individual blame. The civil trial remains in its initial stages, but with the criminal case against Sanchez set for December 11, the events of the night in question are soon to be under intense legal scrutiny.
