- Oct 9, 1999
- 15,216
- 3
- 81
The Stella's 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.
6th place 19-year-old Carl Truman of Los Angeles,
California, won $74,000 & medical expenses when his
neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda Accord. Mr.
Truman apparently did not notice there was someone at
the wheel of the car when he was trying to steal the
hubcaps.
5th place 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 could not reenter the
house because the door connecting the house and garage
locked when he pulled it shut. The family were on
vacation and Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the
garage for 8 days. He subsisted on a case of Pepsi he
found and a large bag of dry dog food. He sued the
house owners insurance claiming the situation caused
him undue mental anguish. The jury agreed to the tune
of $500,000.
4th place 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 dog. 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 a little provoked
at the time, as Mr. Williams who had climbed over the
fence into the yard, was shooting it repeatedly with a
pellet gun.
3rd place 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.
2nd place Kara Walton of Claymont, Delaware, sued
the owner of a night club in a neighboring city when
she fell from the bathroom window to the floor and
knocked out two of her front teeth. This occurred
whilst Ms. Walton was trying to crawl through the
window in the ladies room to avoid paying the $3.50
cover charge. She was awarded $12,000 & dental
expenses.
1st place This year's runaway winner was Mr. Merv
Grazinski of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Mr. Grazinski
purchased a brand new Winnebago Motor Home. On his
trip home from an OU football game, 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
RV left the freeway, crashed &then overturned. Mr.
Grazinski sued Winnebago for not advising him, by
reading the owner's manual, that he actually could not
do this. The jury awarded him $1,750,000 plus a new
Winnebago 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.
successfully sued McDonalds. That case inspired the Stella Awards for the most frivolous successful lawsuits in the United States.
6th place 19-year-old Carl Truman of Los Angeles,
California, won $74,000 & medical expenses when his
neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda Accord. Mr.
Truman apparently did not notice there was someone at
the wheel of the car when he was trying to steal the
hubcaps.
5th place 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 could not reenter the
house because the door connecting the house and garage
locked when he pulled it shut. The family were on
vacation and Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the
garage for 8 days. He subsisted on a case of Pepsi he
found and a large bag of dry dog food. He sued the
house owners insurance claiming the situation caused
him undue mental anguish. The jury agreed to the tune
of $500,000.
4th place 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 dog. 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 a little provoked
at the time, as Mr. Williams who had climbed over the
fence into the yard, was shooting it repeatedly with a
pellet gun.
3rd place 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.
2nd place Kara Walton of Claymont, Delaware, sued
the owner of a night club in a neighboring city when
she fell from the bathroom window to the floor and
knocked out two of her front teeth. This occurred
whilst Ms. Walton was trying to crawl through the
window in the ladies room to avoid paying the $3.50
cover charge. She was awarded $12,000 & dental
expenses.
1st place This year's runaway winner was Mr. Merv
Grazinski of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Mr. Grazinski
purchased a brand new Winnebago Motor Home. On his
trip home from an OU football game, 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
RV left the freeway, crashed &then overturned. Mr.
Grazinski sued Winnebago for not advising him, by
reading the owner's manual, that he actually could not
do this. The jury awarded him $1,750,000 plus a new
Winnebago 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.
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