How do you guys put up with this stuff




Most of the country has heard of the Darwin Awards given annually to
the individuals who do the most for mankind by removing themselves from the
gene pool.

Now, we have the Stella Awards given to the individuals who win the
most frivolous lawsuits ever. The Stella Awards are named in honor of 81
year-old Stella Liebeck, the woman who won $2.9 million for spilling a
cup of McDonald's coffee on herself. The following are candidates for the
award:

1.) January, 2000: Kathleen Robertson of Austin, Texas, was awarded
$780,000 by a jury of her peers after breaking her ankle, tripping over
a toddler who was running amuck inside a furniture store. The owners of
the store were understandably surprised at the verdict, considering that
the misbehaving little fellow was Ms. Robertson's son.

2.) June, 1998: 19 year-old Carl Truman of Los Angeles won $74,000
and medical expenses when his neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda
Accord.
Mr. Truman apparently didn't notice there was someone at the wheel of
the car when he was trying to steal his neighbor's hubcaps.

3.) October, 1998: Terrence Dickson of Bristol, Pa., was leaving a
house he had just finished robbing by way of the garage. He was not able to
get the garage door to go up, because the automatic door opener was
malfunctioning. He couldn't re-enter the house because the door
connecting the house and garage locked when he pulled it shut. The
family was on vacation. Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the garage for eight
days.
He subsisted on a case of Pepsi he found in the garage and a large bag
of dry dog food. Mr. Dickson sued the homeowner's insurance claiming the
situation caused him undue mental anguish. The jury agreed to the tune of a half million dollars.

4.) October, 1999: Jerry Williams of Little Rock Arkansas was awarded
$14,500 and medical expenses after being bitten on the buttocks by his
next door neighbor's beagle. The dog was on a chain in its owner's fenced-in
yard at the time. Mr. Williams was also in the fenced-in yard. The
award was less than sought, because the jury felt the dog might have been
provoked by Mr.Williams who, at the time, was repeatedly shooting it
with a pellet gun.

5.) December, 1997: A Philadelphia restaurant was ordered to pay
Amber Carson of Lancaster, Pa., $113,500 after she slipped on a soft drink
and broke her coccyx. The beverage was on the floor because Ms. Carson
threw it at her boyfriend 30 seconds earlier during an argument.

6.) December, 1997: Kara Walton of Claymont, DE, successfully sued
the owner of a night club when she fell from the bathroom window to the
floor and knocked out her two front teeth. This occurred while Ms.Walton was
trying to sneak through the window in the ladies room to avoid paying
the $3.50 cover charge. She was awarded $12,000 and dental expenses.

And now, a recent addition...

7.) January, 2002: Police in Vermont stopped a man. After running his
name, it came back that there were warrants for his arrest from
Florida.
Before the police could arrest him, he fled into a nearby forest (in
the middle of winter). The police searched for him, but were unable to
find him. Three days later, the suspect turns himself in to police and was
taken to the hospital with frostbite. He ended up having several
fingers and toes amputated. He is now suing the police. Why? The police didn't
look for him hard enough! He stated in an interview, 'If they had searched
harder, they would've found me'. He's accusing the police of dereliction of
duty leading to his loss of limbs.

 

Funny AnDy.... thanks for sharing...

 

I would be curious to know if any of those are actually real lawsuits. I've seen too many things like that on the internet to believe it.

Mark

 

Tsk Tsk Andy!

https://www.s2ki.com/forums/showthread.php?...ighlight=stella

Although the frostbite one is new...

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by wickerbill
[B]I would be curious to know if any of those are actually real lawsuits.

 

Funny you should mention it. Aren't you from that country where the slander lawsuit is an investment strategy? ;-)

 

I can believe that people in america could win such idiotic lawsuits. Once working as a valet at a restaurant this lady who choked on a peice of meat (she was saved by the manager) sued them saying that the pieces were to big to swallow. I know I dont get it either but she got an out of court settlement.

 

Well, don't forget, there's a political system, a bureaucratic system, and a legal system. The American POLITICAL system is largely owned and operated BY and FOR the rich. I think Abraham Lincoln said: "A nation OF the rich, BY the rich, and FOR the rich shall not vanish from the earth".

The American bureaucracy is designed to manage the government. It's nearly incorruptible and is completely inflexible.

This means that grievances between "normal people (non-rich people)" are largely played out in the legal (court) system. So, while the politicians, from the lowliest city councilman to the mightiest senator are primarily worried about legislation that their owners are interested in; the American lawyers are busily suing each other and establishing legal president that is then enforce by the bureaucracy.

What the hell, it's a system. No "system" is perfect. If you're a rich guy, it doesn't really matter that much. It's fun to watch tho.

 

It's not the fault of the "sytem"! It's the will of an overly compasionate, morally based society that is overly eager to care for those victimized, AND those who would seek to take advantage of the emotional tendancies of the compasionate.

AND those who seek to make a buck capitalizing on the desires of both!

The "system" is as the citizenry desires it to be and reflects both the good and the bad.

Unforetunately these examples are offered as absolute representations of the will of our society. In fact, there is overwhelming justice served every day!

PS. Charles Manson was denied parole yesterday....for the TENTH time.

 

AMEN!!!