Re: GEN: Stella Awards-FRI
From: art fougner, md (evsono@pipeline.com)
Thu Jan 31 12:49:14 2002
BTW as astutely noted by Marilyn - these are hoaxes and can be found on
snopes.com. However, given the junk science that so often sways juries,
these could just as easily be real.
just my opinion - i could be wrong.
art
At Wed, 30 Jan 2002, art fougner, md wrote:
>
I don't know whether these are true, but Somebody says they are. Thhe
>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 reenter 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 (of his peers) 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 may
>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 Clamont, 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.
>
>el is right - the kangaroos rule!
>
>--
>art fougner, md
>ich bin ein New Yorker
>
--
art fougner, md
ich bin ein New Yorker
