Plook At Your Own Risk

This is hardly breaking news by now, but it's too good to pass up. Yesterday, a Massachusetts (mid-level) appellate court upheld the dismissal of a civil suit brought by an anonymous man against his (presumably ex) equally anonymous girlfriend for injuring during sex. News accounts have danced around what actually happened, but no such luck here at the Ranch. From the court's opinion:

The plaintiff and the defendant were in a long-term committed relationship. Early in the morning of September 24, 1994, they were engaged in consensual sexual intercourse. The plaintiff was lying on his back while the defendant was on top of him. The defendant's body was secured in this position by the interlocking of her legs and the plaintiff's legs. At some point, the defendant unilaterally decided to unlock her legs and place her feet on either side of the plaintiff's abdomen for the purpose of increasing her stimulation. When the defendant changed her position, she did not think about the possibility of injury to the plaintiff. Shortly after taking this new position, the defendant landed awkwardly on the plaintiff, thereby causing him to suffer a penile fracture.

Although this was generally a position the couple had used before without incident, the defendant did vary slightly the position previously used, without prior specific discussion and without the explicit prior consent of the plaintiff. It is this variation that the plaintiff claims caused his injury. While the couple had practiced what the defendant described as 'light bondage' during their intimate relations, there was no evidence of 'light bondage' on this occasion. The plaintiff's injuries were serious and required emergency surgery. He has endured a painful and lengthy recovery. He has suffered from sexual dysfunction that neither medication nor counseling have been able to treat effectively.

Holy shit - "penile fracture?!?!" Who knew you could break it? The court probably got this one right, for, as Eugene Volokh notes over at Volokh Conspiracy, things could get mighty interesting (in schools, if no place else) if we need to start educating people on the duty of care owed by the "Reasonable Sex Partner." You think the fundies have problems with sex ed now!