Family Of Gregory Murrey, Man Who Fell To Death At Turner Field, Suing Braves

The family of Gregory Murrey, a longtime Atlanta Braves fan who died last Aug. 29 at Turner Field, has officially filed a lawsuit against the Braves and Major League Baseball. The Murrey family claims negligence regarding how high the upper deck guard railing should be.

Family Of Man Who Fell To Death At Turner Field Suing Braves

Murrey reportedly fell at least 45 feet from the upper deck of Turner Field to the concrete ground during the seventh inning of a game against the New York Yankees. Witnesses stated that he stood up from his seat to boo Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez, who was just announced as a pinch hitter. Murrey then reportedly lost his balance upon standing and tumbled over the low-hanging railing.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Murrey died from his injuries before he reached Grady Memorial Hospital. The medical examiner’s office ruled the death as an accident, adding that no underlying medical condition had contributed to Murrey’s death. A toxicology report from Sept. 24, 2015 and obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday stated that Murrey had a blood-alcohol level of 0.104, which is above the state legal limit.

The family claims Murrey’s fall could have been avoided if the guardrails had been at least one foot higher.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution states:

The lawsuit claims that the railing in front of Section 401 was only 30 inches high.

The family of Gregory Kent Murrey argues, through their attorneys, that the railing should be at least 42 inches — what the suit calls the industry standard.

“Had the rail been 42 inches, Mr. Murrey would not have fallen over the rail,” stated the complaint filed in Fulton County State Court.

Ballpark safety became a major issue last season, primarily because of dangerous foul balls and broken bat shards that flew into the crowd and injured unsuspecting fans. This led MLB to recommend extending the protective netting to the edge of both dugouts in order to protect fans sitting closest to the field.

However, other types of injuries have also recently occurred at major-league ballparks.

Murrey’s death marked the 24th time a fan died after falling at an MLB ballpark since 1969. Of those 24 deaths, three have occurred at Turner Field since 2008, including one in 2013 that was ruled a suicide after a fan allegedly jumped 85-feet to a parking lot below.

Although the Braves have not yet made any changes to Turner Field after last season’s accident, there are indications they’re looking at installing guardrails as high as 47 inches in the upper bowl when they move to SunTrust Park next season.

The Braves offered no comment in response to the lawsuit’s filing on Tuesday.

PHOTO: ATLANTA, GA – APRIL 20: Chase Utley #26 of the Los Angeles Dodgers steals second base under Erick Aybar #1 of the Atlanta Braves in the 10th inning at Turner Field on April 20, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)