When Don Henley Was Sued for Assault With a Flying Maraca
We all know Don Henley has some very strong opinions regarding concertgoers taking photos during his shows. On Oct. 4, 2000, one fan accused him of making his feelings painfully clear.
According to an Associated Press report, the trouble started during a Little Rock, Ark. stop on the tour in support of Henley's Inside Job solo LP. Audience member Mary Ann Haley claimed that her attempt to take a picture of the Eagles co-founder was foiled when Henley threw a maraca at her, hitting her on the forehead.
Adding insult to injury, Haley said Henley then "gestured in her direction while announcing that he'd appreciate no more flash photography," all of which combined to cause "highly unpleasant mental reactions, including fright, horror, disappointment, chagrin, worry, disgrace, embarrassment, indignity, ridicule, grief, shame, humiliation, anger and outrage." She promptly filed a lawsuit against Henley, seeking unspecified damages for her trouble.
As Rod Stewart can attest, any star who chucks a projectile off the stage — for whatever reason — is liable to find himself on the receiving end of a lawsuit, but Henley seems to do a good job of keeping his legal team limbered up and ready to go, so he probably wouldn't have had a hard time facing this suit — if it ever made it to court, that is.
There's no record of a settlement or a verdict being handed down on Haley's complaint, and after she filed her lawsuit, the county prosecutor indicated that he was unlikely to pursue an investigation into her claims. "That's not the silliest thing I've heard this year," he scoffed to the AP, "but it's definitely in the Top 10."
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