The Stella Awards [Archive] - ForumsHQ

[Helmut]

The Stellas are named after 81-year-old Stella Liebeck who spilled

coffee on herself and successfully sued McDonalds. That case

inspired the Stella Awards for the most frivolous successful lawsuits in

the United States.



The following are this year's candidates:



1. 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 inside a furniture store. The owners of the store were

understandably surprised at the verdict, considering the misbehaving

little toddler was Ms. Robertson's son.



2. A 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 hub caps.



3. Terrence Dickson of Bristol, Pennsylvania, 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 since 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, and Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the garage for eight

days. He

subsisted on a case of Pepsi he found, and a large bag of dry dog food.

He sued

the homeowner's insurance claiming the situation caused him undue

mental anguish. The jur agreed to the tune of $500,000.



4. 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 beagle was on a chain in its owner's fenced

yard. The award was less than sought because the jury felt the dog might

have been just a little provoked at the time by Mr. Williams who was

shooting it repeatedly with a pellet gun.



5. A Philadelphia restaurant was ordered to pay Amber Carson of

Lancaster Pennsylvania, $113,500 after she slipped on a soft drink and broke

her coccyx (tailbone). The beverage was on the floor because Ms. Carson

had thrown it at her boyfriend 30 seconds earlier during an

argument.



6. Kara Walton of Claymont, Delaware, successfully sued the owner of a

night club in a neighboring city 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.



7. This year's favorite could easily be Mr. Merv Grazinski of Oklahoma

City, Oklahoma. Mr. Grazinski purchased a brand new 32-foot Winnebago

motor home. On his first trip home, having driven onto the freeway, he

set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly left the drivers seat

to go into the back and make himself a cup of coffee. Not surprisingly,

the R.V.

left the freeway, crashed and overturned. Mr. Grazinski sued Winnebago

for not

advising him in the owner's manual that he couldn't actually

do this.



The jury awarded him $1,750,000 plus a new motor home. The company

actually changed their manuals on the basis of this suit, just in

case there were any other complete morons buying their recreation

vehicles.



What's your favorite?



----

Helmut

[YaMamaBitch]

I think they're all rediculous.. Some people are so pathetic..



;)

[Reckless]

and they say our justice system is great.....this proves the civil court system is inherently flawed and about criminal courts...2 letters comes to mind....OJ. 'nuff said.

[Speed]

OJ didn't do it. It was the limo driver.