In celebration of Thanksgiving, I give you our annual Turkey Torts of a few potential and actual lawsuits from this holiday. From deep-fried Turkeys to salmonella salads, the holiday gives personal injury lawyers a great deal to be thankful for. This year we have an array of Thanksgiving-related litigation to report from copyright to torts.
Category: Bizarre
There is an interesting study out by University of Notre Dame Psychology Professor Gabriel Radvansky, which appears to show that one of the causes of forgetfulness may be doorways. Radvansky’s study shows that “entering or exiting through a doorway serves as an ‘event boundary’ in the mind, which separates episodes of activity and files them away.” Does this mean that we need a type of psychological feng shui movement with homes built with fewer doorways?
Continue reading “Abandon Memory All Ye Who Enter Here: Study Finds Doorways Cause Forgetfulness”
In Chesapeake, Virginia, Ashley Fowler, 22, is our latest example of an a human who allegedly expresses her feelings by killing or torturing a pet. In this case, it was a pet piglet of her friend’s former boyfriend, Zach Sawyer, who raised piglets as therapy after an accident. Fowler is accused of decapitating the piglet.
Continue reading “Virginia Woman Accused of Stabbing and Decapitating Piglet”
We have been following the uproar over Suffolk Professor Michael Avery’s email criticizing the sending of care packages to troops abroad. Many of us joined in that criticism while supporting Avery’s right to raise his objections. Now, an adjunct professor, U.S. Army Reserve Major Robert Roughsedge, serving in Afghanistan has resigned over the controversy — a curious response that seems to suggest that Avery should not have been allowed to voice such positions.
Continue reading “Suffolk Professor Resigns Over Anti-Military Statements of Colleague”
Two teenagers share a passing kiss is viewed by most people as a sign of young love. The assistant principal at Orange River Elementary School, however, viewed it as a matter for immediate police intervention. The teacher called in the Lee County Sheriff to handle the teens. As Oliver Wendell Holmes said “[t]he sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer.” That was not even counting the time for arraignment in Florida.
Continue reading “Forbidden Love: Florida School Officials Reportedly Call In Police After Seeing Two Teens Kiss”
Now this is an interesting warning defect case. Toys R Us are selling “You & Me Interactive Triplets” dolls that parents say use bad language. Parents claim that the dolls say “Hey, Crazy Bitch.” Of course, produce defects are those problems that are more dangerous than the expectations of the ordinary consumer. In this case, the child is not in physical danger but the product exposes them to bad language. The dolls are simply too interactive and a bit too “street” for many parents.
Continue reading “Trashing Talking Triplets: Parents Object to Interactive Triplets Dolls That Allegedly Say “Hey, Crazy Bitch.””
For many years, the slogan for Tootsie Rolls was “The world looks mighty good to me cause Tootsie Rolls are all I see.” It appears that that marketing slogan has become a legal strategy. The candy company is suing Footzyrolls in Chicago for trademark confusion. It is yet another lawsuit in a series that we have discussed. I remain highly critical of the current law that allows effective ownership of generic images or terms, obvious parodies, or in this case, a vague familiar name.
Continue reading “Tootsie Sues Footzy: Candy Company Claims Shoe Line Will Confuse Customers”
There is an interesting religious challenge in Georgia where factory worker, Billy E. Hyatt refused to be marked with the sign of “the Beast” and was fired by Plaint Corporation. Plaint found Hyatt less than compliant when he was asked to put on a sticker proclaiming that the plastic factory was accident-free for 666 days. He refused and said that, to do so, would have cost him his eternal soul. Instead, it cost him his job and he is suing.
Continue reading “The Devil Came Down To Georgia: Christian Challenges Termination After Refusing To Wear Sticker With The Number 666”
We have previously seen fake doctors arrested after harmful or lethal operations, often low-cost cosmetic surgeries. Few compete with the alleged medical practice of Oneal Ron Morris, who is accused of injecting the buttocks of women with cement and flat-tire sealant in her “practice.” The use of flat-tire sealant appears to be a favorite off-the-counter item for such faux cosmetic doctors, given past cases. She was charged criminally for practicing without a license and obviously can be sued civilly.
Continue reading “Meet Oneal Ron Morris: Alleged Fake Doctor Who Injected Victims With Cement and Flat-Tire Sealant For “Curvier” Bodies”
Kevin Daly, 22, may need both a clothing and legal make-over. He was not only arrested for allegedly driving drunk and crashing into a police cruiser, but was wearing a tee-shirt reading “I’m not an alcoholic, I’m a drunk. Alcoholics go to meetings.”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The internet is all abuzz about something weird going on in the Gobi Desert in western China. One of the shapes consists of thick white lines drawn at irregular angles. When zoomed-in, erosion has erased some parts of the lines suggesting they were put there several years ago. Check it out for yourself in Google Maps, here.
A math teacher in Fort Myers, Florida is under fire for teaching his students about supply and demand within a market-based system. Jeff Spires’ problem appears to be his choice of pedagogical vehicle: purchasing their own grades. Spires was suspended from Charlotte County High School in Charlotte County, Fla., without pay on Oct. 14 and resigned two weeks later. This “new math” approach could have promise for wider applications as discussed below. Think of it as a variation of Adam Smith’s work, a type of “Wealth of Students” approach to the job market.
Continue reading “Teaching Supply and Demand: Florida Teacher Accused of Selling Math Grades”
An Illinois man, Gary Winner, pleaded guilty to criminal charges in Rhode Island after selling “penis enlargers” to diabetes patients to help with “bladder control, urinary flow and prostate comfort.” This could make for an a particularly novel product liability claim as well as a negligence case.
Nicholas Coyle, 19, is facing charges of animal cruelty in Rhode Island after he allegedly killed a rabbit with a hockey stick and used the body as a puck. He is a student at Salve Regina University.
In Ireland, “grass” is a term for a criminal informant. In Gendale, California, it is a crime itself if it is a fake. The city has added its name to the growing list of cities criminalizing trivial acts — part of a pattern of the criminalization of America discussed in past columns and blogs.
Continue reading “Garden-Variety Crime: California City Criminalizes Artificial Turf”