October 2010 Archives

Here is a story of woe about Juliet, and for once, there is no Romeo in sight. No, this Juliet is facing the unhappy situation of a negligence lawsuit where an elderly lady was hit by a bike, injured and later died. Did we mention Juliet is 6? At the time of the accident, Juliet was three months short of her 5th birthday. Due to her advanced age, the judge in the case ruled she can be sued for negligence.

Before all you mothers have a collective heart attack, please note that as The New York Times reports, Justice Paul Wooten of the New York Supreme Court did not rule the underage Juliet is liable for the injuries that caused the death of 87-year-old Claire Menagh, just that she can be sued for negligence over the accident that caused Mrs. Menagh to be hit.

Divorces are one of the more emotional encounters an individual will have with the legal system. A divorce attorney often takes on the dual role of lawyer and therapist as he or she guides their client through the legal process of a divorce. You may not appreciate his or her soon to be ex-spouse's legal counsel. So what does a Nevada man do to vent his frustration with his wife's attorney? He takes to Facebook, of course.

Jordan Cooper, the unhappily-ever-after husband in Nevada, took to posting mean Facebook comments about attorney Jonathan Goldsmith, and he is now being sued for it, according to Above The Law. Cooper even went so far as to have a relative Facebook "friend" Jonathan Goldsmith in order to gain access to his pictures and personal information. Goldsmith is suing for damages stemming from the defamatory comments.

Most of us have to come to terms with the fact that there is always someone younger, better looking, smarter, or just cooler than you nipping at your heels. Case in point: California's Botox Bandit Melissa Chesney, who might have felt the cool breeze of Florida's Beauty Bandit Maria Elizabeth Chrysson when she joined the stealing beauty club back in July of this year. But, it is all Evian face mist under the bridge now, because the Botox bandit is on her way to a jail cell in a bright, orange jumpsuit. And that is a really unflattering color.

According to The Orange County Register, Chesney pleaded guilty on October 27 to a grand total of 21 felony counts. Based on the list of crimes she pled to, the Botox burglaries were just the pretty face of her crime wave.

It can be difficult for parents to find a baby-sitter at times. Sometimes you are forced to just bring the little ones along and it can be a bit tough on everyone. This story takes the whole "bring the kids along" issue to new, completely inappropriate and quite criminal heights.

A Wisconsin man is being sought for allegedly taking a couple of toddlers along to a medieval themed S&M sex party. According to Fox6 News, police are looking for the children who can be seen in a sex tape found by the man's ex-girlfriend.

The courtroom is a battleground for attorneys. After all, our legal system is designed specifically to arrive at the truth through an adversarial process. But judges generally prefer if profanity, yelling and invitations to "step outside" are not part of the fight in court. In one Stockton, California, courtroom last week, however, things got just a bit out of hand.

The Stockton Record reports that San Joaquin County Public Defender Peter Fox, usually responsible for defending people from criminal charges, is himself the object of a criminal investigation for losing his cool in court and threatening the prosecutor. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately for those who like a spectacle, it didn't come to blows.

But the exchange became heated as Fox "peppered" San Joaquin County Deputy District Attorney Ronald Goodreau with expletives and generally got up in his face during court arguments.

Could there be a link between incurable hiccups and a life of crime? You might think so after hearing that the girl known nationally as the "Hiccup Girl" has been charged with murder. Nineteen-year-old Jennifer Mee was charged with first degree murder for the robbery and shooting of Shannon Griffin, 22. Authorities say Griffin was robbed at gunpoint and fatally wounded when he was lured by Mee to a Florida house.

Sounds like this might be a case of terribly bad karma. Jennifer Mee received national attention as a re-occurring guest on the "Today Show" for having a condition that caused her to hiccup up to 50 times a minute, NBC reports. Mee's hiccups finally dissipated for unknown reasons, but that is when her real problems began.

The permanency of a tattoo is something people often seriously consider before putting ink to skin. The design and the location are also factors up for reflection. A forehead tattoo is perhaps one of the more visible tattoos an individual can get, and one that is virtually impossible to hide absent an extensive hat collection. Another factor to mull over is how a tattoo will implicate you criminally.

There is perhaps no better example of this last consideration than the South Florida iPhone thief whose "I'm Me" forehead tattoo helped lead to his arrest. MSNBC reports that 19 year-old Joseph Eric Williams robbed as many as fifteen AT&T stores in the past two months. Williams approach was very straightforward -- he simply walked into an AT&T store and took a couple phones from the display case by pulling them from their security cables, and ran out the store.

This little crime spree appears simple on the surface. Shoplifting, the crime in quesiton, is never very complex.

But just how these alleged shoplifters committed their crime is more than complex, it's downright baffling. Three women, with the aid of accomplices, shoplifted more than $3,000 worth of liquor by simply tucking the bottles up under their skirts and walking away. Consider the logistics for just a moment, won't you?

As caught on the security video, the three suspects were videotaped at DPF Liquors in Hallandale Beach, Florida, whisking bottles of booze up their skirts. The bottles seem to disappear into a hole in the space-time continuum. Not only do the large bottles not fall and break on the floor, the women stroll around as if they do not have sloshing loads of liquor stashed somewhere on their person.

We at Legally Weird specialize in the odd, the absurd, the sometimes creepy side of American law. Therefore, out of sheer necessity, we have developed a few specialties. Crime linked to fast food restaurants. Bizarre uses of the 911 system. Lawsuits that would make Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia weep. An unfortunately growing specialty seems to be that of dead bodies and the above-ground adventures of those that have already "passed."

The old exploding pen trick. It's been around for ages. It sounds like something that my parents' generation would have done for a few good laughs in the '60s or '70s. But some things never die--like teenage boys having an interest in things that explode. The difference is that in the age of the war on terrorism, sensitivities and punishments are heightened. What was once considered a prank can now be considered terrorism.

In North Carolina, 16 year-old Jessie Bauguess is in jail and facing felony charges, including malicious use of an explosive, possession of a weapon on school grounds, arson and unlawful burning resulting in serious injury to a firefighter, after he detonated a homemade exploding pen at his school. The pen burned the hand of another student and left the student with fragments of the device in their arm. The teen had to be taken to the hospital. Three firefighters later suffered burns as they investigated and tested substances found in the teenager's home. The pen was apparently made from explosive chemicals available at pharmacies and hardware stores.

Can't find a sitter for the kids? Take them with you! The babysitter dilemma happens all the time and often ends in the young child coming to work with the parent until other arrangements can be made. This also applies to crimes. If there is no one available to watch the little one, then he or she will serve as a pseudo accomplice to the crime. It only makes sense.

Here's a relevant example: a burglar brought daughter to break into the house she was robbing in Western Michigan. The Post Chronicle reports that mother of the year is 26 year-old Nicole Bugajski. Bugajski was caught by the elderly homeowner she was robbing, and arrested by police attempting to flee the scene. When police arrested her, they also found her 2 year-old daughter inside.

Welcome back to Legally Weird, where it's always weird, but not always legal.

Today's strange tale involves our old friend Terry Jones, the Florida pastor who announced he would be burning a Qu'ran on September 11 this year. The proposed event became a media fire storm, with President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Gen. David Petraeus all saying that the plan would endanger American troops.

It turns out that one more person offered some persuasion as well--car dealer Brad Benson, who made a radio ad around the same time offering to give Terry Jones a new car if he agreed not to burn the Qu'ran: "If you don't burn a Qu'ran, I'll give you a new car."

Imagine Benson's surprise when he received a phone call from one of Jones representatives who called to collect the car, a 2011 Hyundai Accent. Benson at first thought it was a hoax, but upon request, Jones sent in a copy of his driver's license. Jones said that he plans to donate the car to an organization that helps abused Muslim women.

Is it retribution: man sees stripper, man goes blind in one eye? Not. It's not karmic payback, it's personal injury. A man has received a $650,000 damage award for injuries received during a dance. Couldn't make that one up if we tried. Injured party Michael Ireland was popped in the eye by stripper "Suki's" spiked high heel back in 2008, when he got up close and personal during a dance at the Cheetah Club, near West Palm Beach, Fla.

According to the Palm Beach Post, the strip club injury was sustained during a stroll along the bar by the dancer. The performer spun suddenly when she felt someone touch her and poked her metal-heeled stiletto through Ireland's face, causing serious harm to the bones around his eye and his nose, resulting in permanent double vision and dizziness. This is quite an issue for Ireland; he makes his living as a roofer. The Cheetah Club decided to come to a settlement agreement, rather than going to court and risking a higher award at the hands of a jury.

Contract law can be dry and boring. There, I said it. The endless pages of words written out in legalese are dizzying, even to a lawyer. But when the CIA sues a former agent for breach of contract there is something a little more glamorous about the suit. Twenty year veteran of the CIA, "Ishmael Jones" (the publishing author's pseudonym) is part of a civil suit relating to his book, "The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture."

The Washington Times reports that the suit is centered around the fact that Jones published the book without allowing the CIA censors to remove important and confidential portions before hitting the press -- essentially accusing Jones of breaking his secrecy agreement with the CIA. A pre-publication review of any books or other material is a clause in CIA contracts designed to allow the agency to protect the intelligence sources, methods, and activities of the organization. The Post describes the books as, "a detailed account of his career inside the CIA's clandestine service and his work as a "nonofficial" cover operative in the Middle East and Europe." Jones makes some bold accusations against the CIA, mainly questioning the effectiveness of the program and asserts violations of the CIA's founding charter.

Flashy glass towers, sprawling lawn, elaborate decorations -- the Crystal Cathedral megachurch is quite a tourist attraction. Now it looks like those in charge of Orange County's Crystal Cathedral may be answering to a different type of higher power -- bankruptcy court. MSNBC.com reports that the church owes close to $7.5 million to unsecured creditors and a total of $55 million in debt.

Crystal Cathedral, which was founded by television evangelist Robert Schuller, has over 10,000 members. In addition to it's commanding presence, Robert Schuller put the church on the map during his televised "Hour of Power" broadcasts. The decision to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy came after several of the church's creditors obtained a writ of attachment. MSNBC.com notes that, "the church's budget woes have forced it to downsize its staff, cancel programming in certain markets, and even send home choir and orchestra members." Prior to filing for bankruptcy, the church was attempting to work out the outstanding bills independent of court intrevention.

In a political atmosphere that is feeding off of mistrust of the federal government, one might think that the public would turn to local government. However, that might not be a solution, as stories of local officials run amok seem to be increasing every day. Of course the bellwether for mayors and city fathers behaving badly is Bell, California with its massive corruption investigation still continuing. Here, however,  is one more mayor many citizens of So. Cal. are pleased is not the head of their town.

According to the Associated Press, Mayor Albert Huang of San Gabriel was arrested for snatching a woman's purse and taking her on Mr. Mayor's wild ride through the town streets on October 15. So much for a law and order administration. Police were called to the scene after a witness reported a squabble between the mayor and a woman, allegedly over money. Reportedly, Huang grabbed the woman's purse containing her car keys and money. Mayor Huang then allegedly hopped into her car and started to speed away with the woman clinging to the vehicle from the running board.

Everyone knows that little boys can be violent if you take their toys away from them. Tell a little boy that he has been playing too many video games and they throw a tantrum and tell you it isn't fair and they hate you. It doesn't make it right, but it is predictable. However, that excuse doesn't carry much weight when you're 42.

Darren Suchon lived with his 36-year-old girlfriend, Colleen Frable in Palmerton, Pa. One day they had a PlayStation dispute when Frable decided to take the PlayStation 3 gaming console to work with her. So what was Suchon's reaction? Wait until she got home? Play at a friends house? Call her at her office? No, no, no. That's all far too reasonable.

Instead, Suchon got into his 1996 Porsche and allegedly chased after Frable, eventually ramming into her Chevy Impala and running her off the road. Nice. According to witnesses, once Suchon got Frable to pull over, he ran to her window and started clawing at it, screaming, "I'm going to break the f**king window," ABC reports. "...I just wanted the game. I would never hurt her. I just wanted the game," Suchon told police.

It may be a bit better than smashing windows, but it is still vandalism. Police report that the Florence Islamic Center in Florence, South Carolina, was hit by pig parts this past Sunday, October 10. In fact, the perpetrators kindly spelled out the words "PIG CHOPS*" in case anyone arriving at the center would be in doubt about the materials on the ground.

According to an interview with the Associated Press reported in TPMMuckraker, Florence Police Major Carlos Raines said the the bacon bits were placed on the sidewalk between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Sunday. But make no mistake, this was not an attempt to just attract a few pests or animals to the mosque, this was a pointed act. "There's absolutely nothing that identifies it as a mosque," Raines told the AP. "It's an insult, and I'm sure that's what it was intended for."

This crime story sounds amusing on first glance, and then, not so much. In Rocky Point, New York, the question for police is not as much "who let the dogs out?" as "who let the gorillas out?" Three suspects, two gorillas and a chicken, are the subject of a man --make that animal -- hunt after a bicycle theft on October 11.

According to Suffolk County police, the three animals approached a young teen who was riding his bike on along Route 25A just after one in the afternoon, reports the Associated Press. One of the brave, upstanding gorillas punched the 15 year-old bicyclist in the head, knocking him off the object of the monkey's desire. Despite the fact a gorilla did all the work, the chicken took over, hopped on the bike and rode away.

Illegal marijuana growers come in many types. Some operate carefully constructed indoor farms, complete with sophisticated hidden rooms equipped with hydroponic materials utilizing all sorts of advanced growing techniques. Then there are people on the other end of the spectrum, like Bryan Hartman, who was arrested for growing 17 plants of marijuana in his front yard.

According to Osceloa County, Florida, police, Hartman's front yard forest had marijuana plants as tall as seven feet. Authorities said the plants were easy to see from the roadway, The Associated Press reports.

A traffic jam in Los Angeles is nothing new. A traffic jam in Los Angeles because a rock band decided to play an impromptu concert atop a truck ... now that's giving a new meaning to a jam. The Los Angeles section of the 101 freeway was blocked up for over a mile early Tuesday morning as a result of the three-man band's illegal antics. It took police over an hour to reach the site of the concert.

The LA Times reports on the once little known band arrested for blocking the freeway: "In what is believed to be an effort at promotion, authorities said that members of a band called Imperial Stars blocked all but one lane of the southbound 101 with a large truck advertising the band." The band was, of course, singing their song "Traffic Jam 101." Complicating authorities' attempt to close the curtains on the performance -- the driver of the truck fled the scene shortly after parking the truck over four of the five lanes, and took the keys with him.

It is always nice to report on a crime which, after investigation, turns out not to be a crime. A man was investigated by the secret service on October 11, for throwing a book at President Obama. The president was in Philadelphia for a rally and attracted a few stunts, as well as thousands of supporters. Although the book thrower was cleared of criminal wrongdoing; the streaker was not so lucky.

Much like the way the TSA does not appreciate innocent jokes about bombs being told in the security line at the airport, Homeland Security, home of the Secret Service, does not appreciate any unusual activity in the vicinity of a sitting president. According to the CBS report, a man threw a book toward the president while he was on stage at the Philadelphia rally. This in and of itself was enough to have the thrower hauled in for questioning.

Cruel and unusual punishment is forbidden by the Eight Amendment to the U. S. Constitution. Is the following story cruel and unusual, or creative and justified? You be the judge.

Daniel Mireles and his wife Eloise were convicted of stealing from the Harris County Texas crime victims fund. Eloise Mireles was a public employee and the brains behind the scheme, reports TalkLeft.com. The judge in their case must have spent some real time thinking about how best to punish the Mireleses, because the terms of probation sound like something right out of the Scarlet Letter. As a condition of avoiding a prison sentence, they were given rather uncommon terms of parole. In addition to community service, Daniel and Eloise Mireles will each have to stand in the road with a large sign detailing everything they did.

It is difficult to even know where to start with this story. A woman is suing the Hyatt Hotel corporation for invasion of privacy, negligence in hiring, training and supervision and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The cause of the suit? Dayanara Fernandez returned to her room in a Hyatt in Deerfield, Illinois, to find an employee attired in his Hyatt uniform - from the waist up. From the waist down, he was dressed in her skirt and a pair of her heels.

AoL reports that Ms. Fernandez has filed her suit in county court in Los Angeles. The incident happened while Fernandez was in Illinois to attend a wedding. After surprising the Hyatt employee, Oscar Garcia-Franco, in her room, he kindly ran into the bathroom to change. But because he did not shut the door completely, Fernandez unfortunately discovered he was also wearing a pair of her underwear.

Don't try to understand this story. I don't have the answers and after reading this, neither will you.

It goes something like this: Daniela Gaskie (now former) Miss Kentucky Latina, allegedly beat up a woman and stabbed a man in the neck with a ball-point pen. Gaskie, 22, was arrested in Richmond, after the violent attacks on a gas station attendant and a pharmacist.

There are many reasons why kids should not have kids. This is just one of them. A teen-aged mother and father were charged with abuse after pictures surfaced of their 22 month-old son duct taped to a wall. Not only did they commit this illegal and stupid act, they took pics to share with friends. Jayla Hamm, 18, and her boyfriend Corde Honea, 19, were arrested back in January of this year when one friend gave the pictures of the duct taped toddler to authorities.

ABC News reports that Hamm was sentenced for abuse last month, to a resounding 10 days in jail and two years of probation. Corde Honea, the unfortunate boy's daddy, was sentenced to three to five years for child abuse. Honea also got another 12 to 24 months on felony possession of stolen firearms.

From the age of sixteen forward, drivers are taught the rules of the road and given a ticket for not following them. The same holds true for parking. So wouldn't it follow that even in death, parking laws would be so ingrained in a driver that he or she would continue to follow them? Guess not. According to Gothamist, a Queens traffic officer issued a parking ticket to a dead driver. Why? Because he was illlegaly parked on the street during street sweep hours, of course.

Gothamist reports on the legally weird citation, "Early Tuesday morning a traffic cop came across Nicholas Rappold who was slumped across the front seat of his Jeep Cherokee...Rappold was dead." The 21 year-old Rappold was dead at the time of the citation, dying from a drug overdose in the early morning hours. An hour after the citation was issued, a friend noticed Rappold's car still parked on the street (Rappold had left his friend's house hours before) and went to check on him. It was at that time that he discovered his cold corpse behind the wheel.

This crime has a real bang-up ending. In Memphis, Tennessee, a 45 year-old man is under arrest for firing his gun at two teenagers and managing to hit one of them. In the rear end. The alleged shooter, Kenneth E. Bonds, has been charged with aggravated assault.

Bonds would not doubt protest that the only aggravation that should apply in this story is that caused by the sight of the two teens involved. As the Associated Press reports, the incident began with the two strolling through Kenneth Bonds' southwest Memphis, Tennessee, neighborhood in all their baggy pantsed glory, on September 25. Bonds reportedly yelled at the two to pull up their pants. The teens refused and words were exchanged. Bonds allegedly brandished his weapon (a semi-automatic) and the argument ended, as so many do these days, in gun fire.

An elderly man kills roommate over singing. Yes, you read the headline right. 81 year-old William Leo McDougall will be arraigned at a Santa Ana, California, courthouse for the death of his roommate after he killed him for singing in their shared room at a Southern California healthcare center. No word on what song it was.

The LA Times Blog reports on the deadly tunes: "William McDougall was recovering from hip surgery at the Palm Terrace Healthcare Center when he allegedly became angry with Manh Van Nguyen, who had begun singing in Vietnamese." The 91 year-old Nguyen was also recovering hip surgery when the attack occurred. McDougall repeatedly hit Nguyen with a metal rod from their closet, and Nguyen ultimately died from blunt force trauma later that day.

There is just nothing like an upstanding, avuncular looking, Reagan-appointed, alum of the Citadel, war veteran federal judge getting down and dirty for sheer shock and awe value. Federal U.S. District Judge Jack T. Camp Jr. was arrested last Friday, October 1, on wepons and drug charges. How was he caught? His stripper friend rolled over on him.

According to MSNBC, the judge was informed on by a drug-using stripper pal, known only by the cute nickname given to her by the feds, CI-1. At a guess, that just might stand for Confidential Informant 1. CI-1 has reportedly supplied authorities with information about Judge Camp's activities with her including cocaine and marijuana use, the use of a prescription pain reliever called roxycodone and of course the sex he "purchased" from her. In addition to the drug charges, MSNBC reports Judge Jack Camp faces illegal weapons charges stemming from firearms found in his car.

There is just nothing like a theme to brighten your day. However, the theme developing now on Legally Weird and elsewhere is not a good one; so let's drag it out into the light and take a good look. Bullying and cyberbullying are becoming a constant, and it is out of control. Last week, it was a grandmother flipping out over comments on Facebook which ended in a knife attack. Then, it was old school face-to-face bullying that led a Texas teenager to take his life. And now, here we are again, with 25 year-old Breana Greathouse driving 200 miles to allegedly kill a man who made nasty comments about her on an underground hip hop site.

Perhaps some think the net provides enough distance and protection to allow people t let loose with the verbal mayhem? Not unless you want the possibility of physical mayhem to follow you home to Ottumwa, Iowa. That is where alleged forum commenter Forrest Jamison lives and where Breana Greathouse was heading, according to the Social Graf on MediaPost.com.

What makes a burglary extra special? How about topping it off with bite to eat, something to drink and a shower?

According to the Pinal County Sheriff's Office in Eloy, Arizona, two houses were burglarized in which the burglars only stole food and water and after they were finished, the burglars showered. Pinal County Sheriff's deputies believe that the burglars were illegal immigrants.

One homeowner came home to find the Arizona burglars attempting to steal food and water from his home. He tried to tackle one of the burglars, but both successfully ran away into the desert. It begs the question, which is more disturbing: having your home broken into, or having your toilet and shower used by burglars?

The scene: two friends, Steve and Jim, are watching TV at Steve's house on a Thursday evening.

Steve: The Senate passed a bill to lower the volume of television commercials. 

Jim: What?!? 

Steve: The Senate passed a bill to lower the volume of television commercials. 

Jim: (points at commercial blaring on TV) Can you turn down the TV? Make the commercials quieter!!! 

Steve: I just turned down the TV a minute ago. That's what I'm talking about. When the commercials come on, it gets louder. 

Jim: Who is prouder? 

Steve: Louder. 

Jim: Louder? No. Turn it down. 

Steve: Forget it.

You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs; everyone knows that. Everyone also knows that this means that in order to get past some tough times in life, you have got to get a little messy. However, most attorneys would advise against trying to spread that mess around, especially onto the judge assigned to your case. Angry defendant Agim Demiri didn't consider any of this of folk wisdom, or else he took it too literally, because he is now in jail for throwing an egg at a judge.

His idea was bad, his aim was worse, reports the Carmi Times. Demiri sure enough took aim at Judge Timothy McJoynt with a fresh egg, but he didn't even hit him. However, he himself got hit with a sentence from another judge, the Honorable Blanche Fawell, whose aim was a bit better. Demiri was hit with charges of aggravated criminal damage to state-supported property. He will spend 90 days in jail.