What a newly revealed group chat reveals at Gwyneth Paltrow’s trial

aOnline posts by a man suing Gwyneth Paltrow over a skiing collision seven years ago may have changed the course of the bomb trial – but it was only discovered by an online investigator after both sides of the litigation failed to recover it.

Attorneys for Terry Sanderson, 76, have argued that the Hollywood star rammed him on the slopes of Mount Flagstaff at the Deer Valley Resort on February 26, 2016. Sanderson claims Ms. Paltrow rammed him in a “full-body blow” leaving him with a permanent traumatic brain injury that robbed him of “his pleasure for life.” “.

Meanwhile, Paltrow claims it was Sanderson who bumped into her.

New evidence was revealed earlier this week after online detective Michael Fletcher gained access to a link Sanderson emailed to his three daughters after the collision – which the defense earlier claimed was broken. talk with The Independent On Wednesday, Mr Fletcher said he just had to set up a Meetup account and get back to a group chat discussion the day the skiing accident happened.

“I’ve been watching the trial. It’s the most important piece of evidence,” Mr. Fletcher said after they kept saying. “Mind you, I did all this on a cell phone.”

Newly revealed letters between Sanderson and witness Craig Ramone provide insight into their new reactions after the crash, unlike their version of what went down on the slopes in Deer Valley seven years later.

While some of their remarks on the Meetup forum match accounts jurors have heard in the seven days of the trial so far, others are somewhat at odds with what Sanderson and Ramon witnessed.

Here’s how those posts measure up to what has been said in the trial so far:

Did Mr. Sanderson Skate Again?

One of the claims at the heart of Sanderson’s argument is that the collision with Mrs. Paltrow robbed him of his “charm” and “life charm.”

The jury heard that Sanderson could no longer enjoy the activities that used to give him joy — dancing, wine tasting, and skiing — because of his cognitive decline.

“I researched this skating group, and I went back in 2014 to every one of that group’s previous events that had Craig Ramone and Terry in attendance,” Mr. Fletcher said. The Independent.

But Mr. Fletcher said he found a post on Oct. 22, 2016, that hinted Sanderson had at least tried skiing in the aftermath of his crash with Paltrow.

The post reads: “…plan to join the mixed-abilities Alta Ski group. We usually ski mid-week and some Sundays…”

Mr Sanderson testified on Monday that despite his doctor’s instructions not to ski again, he tried to do so without success.

He told the jury, “I was told that if that happened and I had another accident, I could end up full time in a nursing home.”

Did Craig Ramone know Mrs. Paltrow’s celebrity status?

After cross-examination by the defense last week, Craig Ramone claims he only became aware of Ms. Paltrow’s celebrity status thanks to another member of the Meetup group he and Mr. Sanderson were skating with on the day of the collision.

Mr. Ramon said he was initially told by Erik Christiansen, Ms. Paltrow’s son Moses’ ski instructor, that Mr. Sanderson ” [taken] Outside Gwyneth Paltrow. ”

Then, on Tuesday (March 21), another skater testified to her that the Hollywood star was “with the Coldplay guy” — likely a reference to Chris Martin, the band’s frontman and Ms. Paltrow’s ex-husband.

In fact, Ms. Paltrow was skating with her two kids, Apple and Moses, and then-boyfriend, Brad Falchuk.

Mr. Ramon also claimed that Mr. Falchuk gave him a dirty look as he walked past an unconscious Mr. Sanderson whose face was still deep in the snow.

But when recounting the collision days later in a Meetup chat, Mr. Ramone offered a more colorful look at his knowledge of the Goop mogul.

“Gwyneth took Terry out last week. Last Saturday, her son broke his arm skateboarding in Park City,” Mr. Ramone wrote. “Gwyneth was staying at Montague. I took her plane from Million Air. I wish I knew so many more people. What makes me angry is that Gwyneth took Terry out and just took off.”

Although the post echoed Ramón’s earlier testimony to that version of events, Paltrow’s attorneys attempted to poke holes in his claims that he was barely aware of Paltrow’s fame.

After the Meetup posts were accepted in court on Monday, Mr. Ramon took the stage again to explain his observations. He told the jury that “a lady he knew at Montague” told him that Mrs. Paltrow was staying there and that he only learned of her flight arrangements because another friend worked at Million Air.

“I knew Gwyneth had taken Teri out, so when I saw her she told me what happened, I didn’t ask her,” he said.

When confronted with his claims about Mrs. Paltrow’s son’s falsity, he said, “I have no idea, that’s what I’ve been told.”

Was Mr. Sanderson really bumped into by Mrs. Paltrow?

In the newly revealed posts, Sanderson did not say who was at fault in the incident, but testified Monday that he “didn’t like celebrities.”

When asked why he sent an “I’m famous” email to his three daughters just hours after the collision, he said “another personality” had taken over.

“My head was confused. All I was desperately trying to do was connect with my kids before they would hear from someone else,” Mr. Sanderson told jurors. “I didn’t choose my words well — and it didn’t feel at all the way I did… I was really trying to add some grit to a dangerous situation and it backfired. I didn’t know this was where we were going to be.”

He then said, “I’m not into celebrity worship, so I didn’t care at that point…it was the other personality inhabiting my body.”

Mr. Sanderson only commented on a skateboarding Meetup set about his injuries.

“Thank you everyone for your concern… It’s official ‘at least two broken ribs and a concussion.’ My ribs only hurt when I move…” he wrote at the time.

How long did it take Mr. Sanderson to remember his name?

In a 2019 deposition, Ramon told Paltrow’s attorney that Sanderson did not know his name when he regained consciousness after the collision.

However, he said at the time that after a few seconds, Mr. Sanderson remembered and nodded.

He then told the jury last week that Sanderson did not remember his name, and confronted the defense with his earlier statements.

On the Meetup forum, Mr Ramone wrote: “The thing you didn’t see Scott was Terry coming off. A nasty blow to the head! Not sure if Terry broke his ribs. I saw the hit. Terry didn’t know his name. I asked Terry his name and he didn’t.” He knows. Scott really scared me.”

“When I first asked him, he didn’t remember his name,” said Ramon, who is being questioned again on Monday.

Mr. Ramon confirmed that he thought it took about six seconds to remember Mr. Sanderson’s name, but he wasn’t sure because he wasn’t timing it.

Another post by Mr. Sanderson reads: “I was so happy to see this sleigh come out… I didn’t really know from below…”

What is the extent of Mr. Sanderson’s injuries?

One of the comments disclosed by Mr Sanderson shows the early signs of his concerns about the impact of the collision on both his physical health and his personality, which is the primary issue in his lawsuit.

“Concussions cause some bizarre physical and personality problems unlike anything I’ve experienced before. I hope it comes quickly…” Mr. Sanderson wrote.

Mr. Sanderson filed a damages claim in January 2019 and is seeking $300,000 in damages for the injuries he sustained, prompting the actress to file a counterclaim seeking a symbolic $1 should she win and cover her legal expenses.

During the first six days of the trial, Mr. Sanderson’s lawyers and expert medical witnesses described how the injuries were most likely caused by someone hitting him from behind and attributed marked changes in mental acuity to that day’s injuries.

Paltrow’s attorneys have attempted to portray Mr. Sanderson as a 76-year-old whose decline has followed a natural course of aging rather than resulting from a collision with their famous client.