Lawsuit Says Actor at “Full-Contact” Haunted House in Gresham Broke a Customer’s Teeth

House of Shadows bills itself as the only “full-contact” haunted house in Oregon.

Scary reaper from the haunted house attraction here at the Nevada Wild Fest. (dualdflipflop)
By Jayce Wagner

A new lawsuit alleges that an actor at a popular "full-contact" haunted house in Gresham broke three of a patron's teeth.

The lawsuit, filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, is spare on details. But it alleges an actor at the House of Shadows haunted house assaulted a customer named Eric Benson with "dangerous equipment or props," causing coronal fractures to three of his front teeth.

A coronal fracture is a full break, not a crack or a chip. It's the kind of injury you might expect to see in a bad bike accident, or from playing a full-contact sport, not the sort of thing you'd expect to receive going to a haunted house.

But the House of Shadows bills itself as the only "full-contact" haunted house in Oregon, promising to have you "screaming for your life by the time you leave." It's open during the Halloween season, of couse, but it also has an upcoming "Nightmare After Halloween," event for the holiday season, kicking off on December 7, 2018.

The experience provided by the House of Shadows, in a repurposed former Circuit City store in Gresham, is supposed to be intense and scary, with hosts warning patrons that they will likely get separated from their group while wandering its haunted halls. The "full-contact" part of the experience means you can expect to be touched, grabbed, and jostled around all in the name of getting a good scare.

Benson, who claims he was more than merely jostled, seeks $50,000 in damages.

Lawyers for Benson and House of Shadows did not return WW's calls seeking comment.

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