A Dutchman who was attacked by a javelina at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum last summer wants $400,000 from the museum and taxpayers in Pima County, which owns the museum site.
Rene Zegerius was visiting Tucson in June with his family when he was attacked by a javelina standing alongside a path inside the museum grounds.
The javelina bit Zegerius so hard that it tore muscle and nerves and severed veins and arteries in his right calf. He also was bit in his left hand and suffered similar injuries there.
Zegerius spent eight days in a hospital, his children had to stay with relatives, and he lost money on hotel and travel reservations because he had to cancel his trip.
His medical expenses came to almost $70,000 and are expected to increase.
When Zegerius flew back to the Netherlands, his plane ticket cost more than $15,000 since he needed to buy a last-minute, first-class ticket because his injuries required that he be kept horizontal during the trip.
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An attorney for Zegerius said his client bares no ill will toward the Desert Museum.
"These were very serious injuries," said Clague Van Slyke, a Tucson attorney representing Zegerius. "It could have been fatal. Fortunately, it wasn't, but he has permanent nerve damage."
Van Slyke said Zegerius wants only fair compensation for what he has suffered and the money he wouldn't have had to spend if he hadn't been bit.
Van Slyke filed a claim against Pima County last month as the Desert Museum's landlord, but in an interview he said the principal liability lies with the Desert Museum.
Van Slyke said he doesn't believe the Desert Museum has proved the javelina that attacked Zegerius isn't one of its javelinas, and zookeepers have an absolute obligation to keep visitors safe from their animals.
He said that even if the javelina is a wild animal, the Desert Museum has an obligation to protect visitors.
"They have a duty to guests to protect them," he said. "Clearly, you cannot protect someone from something like a snake or a bee sting, but they have the whole property fenced to prevent wild animals from going in.
"Javelina have gotten in before," he added. "They shouldn't have waited for someone to be attacked to take action."
Robert Edison, the museum's executive director, said he could not comment extensively on the claim, but he was certain it was not a museum javelina that attacked Zegerius. He said officials from the Arizona Game and Fish Department checked every animal for blood or other evidence and found nothing.
But the javelina that attacked Zegerius was never found.
"We have wild animals on the grounds all the time because we are part of a natural setting," Edison said. "Guests are advised of that."
Van Slyke said he hopes to avoid a lawsuit and is willing to submit to mediation, but when he was initially contacted by the Arizona Daily Star, he said he had heard nothing from the Desert Museum's insurance carrier.
Shortly after a reporter called the Desert Museum, the insurance carrier got in touch with Van Slyke. Attorneys from both sides now are saying they hope to resolve the issue without litigation.
County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry said he had no comment on the claim.
