Sign-Switcher Convicted Anyway
I believe I reported a while ago on the case of John Hopwood, British motorist and speeder who was ticketed after a camera caught him driving 48 mph in a 30-mph zone. Hopwood did the obvious thing: go get your…
Brilliant Arguments
Pimp Sues Customers For Engaging in Illegal Activity
A Dutch man who formerly lived in Florida, but was deported after being charged with running one of the largest escort services in the Southeast, has sued six of his former customers for breaking the law while being "escorted." By…
Note to Self: “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” May Not Be Legally Binding
This transcript from a CNN report records a great argument by Larry Burns, attorney for a woman who was married to three men (independently). Julia Bish was already married to Randy Bish when she married Sgt. Mark Hunt last year…
Order Denying Motion for Incomprehensibility
That’s the actual title, and those are the actual grounds for denial. Quality work from Judge Leif Clark of the Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas. Complete with footnote to Adam Sandler movie "Billy Madison." The Smoking Gun.com
Insurer’s Attempt to Blame Dog for Fire Fails
Last month, the Third Circuit affirmed a decision granting summary judgment to the maker and seller of a halogen lamp believed to have caused a fire that destroyed a New Jersey home. They had been sued by State Farm, which…
Woman + Woman’s Fetus Held Not to Constitute “Carpool”
A municipal judge in Phoenix ruled in 2006 (Snopes, NBC) that a woman was properly ticketed for using the carpool lane, despite her argument that she was in fact riding with a "passenger" because she was pregnant. A good question for…
Judge Not Amused by Twin Antics
Yamahile Ortiz, 18, was sentenced to probation last week after pleading guilty to charging over $1000 on a stolen credit card. And away she went. But back she came not long afterwards, with her identical twin sister Yaricza, and an…
Least Viable “Consent” Defense Ever
A man in Pittsburgh is suing his former girlfriend for $30,000 in damages resulting from a post-breakup bedroom experience that he claims was assault and battery, but that her attorney claims was a "consensual act." The suit claims that after…
“Mental Incident” Defense Gains Probation for Pantsless American
Richard Simmons (no relation to the fitness guru, if that’s what you call that Richard Simmons) was arrested in July in Pocatello, Idaho, after he pointed a gun at another driver and then exposed himself to police officers. According to…
Geneva Convention Invoked to Save Grapefruit Tree
Laura and Edmund Gerstein of Boca Raton (“Rat Mouth”), Florida, have made a formal claim of immunity under the 1949 Geneva Convention for a grapefruit tree in their backyard. The tree apparently has been targeted by the state for removal…