ConGregation February 5, 2005 Share ConGregation Member February 5, 2005 http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,3...691638,00.html# I love how she says she thought it was neighbors that she had problems with in the past! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 5, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 5, 2005 I coulda got her more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zerodamage February 5, 2005 Share Guest zerodamage Guests February 5, 2005 Please.... Fix.....such......stupid......lawsuits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 5, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 5, 2005 I coulda got her more. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm sure her lawyer was telling her the same thing. "You can get more than just the medical bills, pain and suffering, baby!" But wouldn't the lawyer take a cut of the $900 awarded? So didn't she end up worse? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 5, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 5, 2005 erm, the girls committed a criminal offense that put the woman in the hospital. Hindsight and full disclosure may make it seem like "good samaritan" type stuff, but it surely could scare the bejesus outta the average elderly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 5, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 5, 2005 I'm sure her lawyer was telling her the same thing. "You can get more than just the medical bills, pain and suffering, baby!" But wouldn't the lawyer take a cut of the $900 awarded? So didn't she end up worse? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> She ended up worse for certain. Prolly b/c of the sympathy for the perps. But her lawyer likely got $300 for 10+ hours work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 5, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 5, 2005 erm, the girls committed a criminal offense that put the woman in the hospital. Hindsight and full disclosure may make it seem like "good samaritan" type stuff, but it surely could scare the bejesus outta the average elderly. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Sure, what they did wasn't wise. But she obviously was in it for the money when she turns down their offer of paying the medical bills. She shows either a VERY vindictive attitude toward two well minded young girls, OR a very greedy and lawsuit mental state of mind. Neither of which can ever be described as a virtue. Most lawyers just feed the greed. What good would it have done those two girls to make their parents pay thousands of dollars for pain and suffering? I understand lawsuits to deter a certain behaviour and they have their place. But this story is rediculous and only a lawyer would argue otherwise! <QUICK, close the thread so non-lawyers come in here and prove me wrong!> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ice_Berge_00 February 5, 2005 Share Ice_Berge_00 GC Alumni February 5, 2005 I agree that what the girls did wasn't the smartest thing, but on the other hand I think the court decision wasn't just either. Our society has gotten so lawsuit happy in the past years that people sue for anything absurd. This sounds to me like the old woman was going for money and attention without regard for what she was doing. I can understand calling the sherrif if you see someone outside your home, but that's the most extremem reasonable course of action. Cleary the old lady was unwilling to show any amount of compassion or respect for the good intentions the girls had. Her excuse that they shouldn't have been out at that night sounds like a cheap ploy to rationalize her suit as a lesson. Stupid and frivalous suits like this only waste taxpayers' money and peoples' time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gOOters February 5, 2005 Share gOOters Member February 5, 2005 I hope she choked on the crumbs...old witch. And she was 49...not elderly. I'll bet all the neighbors hate her guts now. How snide all her comments in the paper were. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoMamma February 6, 2005 Share YoMamma Member February 6, 2005 The girls should sue her for eating her cookies without paying. I hope that witch gets a real heart attack soon... wait she cant cause she doesnt have a heart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 6, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 6, 2005 Wow, the impression of lawyers is bad (or is it just easy to blame them??). I'd have to disagree with the "feed the greed" comment. First, this is assuming that the lawyer is paid hourly, which isn't likely here. Second, the more likely scenario is that it is a contingent fee, it ignores that lawyers are a business in and of themselves. They must make wise decisions on what would or would not be a good case. Can't stay in business otherwise. I'd say this lawyer made a good decision in pursuing this. Look at it this way: Teenagers out knocking on doors and running. No face to face contact, just the "surprise". They left a package we all know now to be harmless, but what about the person receiving it? They put someone in the hospital. Then they take the easy way out. An impersonal apology with a request to indemnify against further claims (did they have a lawyer??). They realized what they did was wrong. The woman shouldn't have to accept this. What should have happened? (or would have if these were my kids). They would have gone to this woman's door personally, explained their boneheadedness and taken care of it face-to-face. If this happens and she still pursues it through court, then maybe the sympathy kicks in. But to blame the lawyer for these kids and their parents trying to take the easy way out, well that's just wrong. And to blame the woman for the teenagers/parents inability to handle things appropriately, is as much wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubblegum Bandit February 6, 2005 Share Bubblegum Bandit Member February 6, 2005 I'm got going to argue the legalese of this situation...the cause and effect was that what these girls did sent this woman to the hospital. I don't think she sued for greed considering she only asked for $900, in this day and age if it was greed she would have sued for 900,000. In all honesty though X, do you really believe that what these girls did was wrong? Maybe the late night delivery was a little awry. The article I read says the knocked on the door for several minutes and only came to the house because they saw a light in the house on. I don't remember if I read it or just got the impression, but I don't think a plate with cookies on it would constitute as a "bomb-bearing" look-a-like as I think you eluded to above. Anyway, I understand that this jittery woman was sent to the hospital for these girls' actions and I'd say that they all, the girls and the woman got what they deserved in the end. But I have a hard time thinking that what the girls did was wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 6, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 6, 2005 But everyone's looking at it after the fact. I don't doubt they had good intentions. But what's being read into it is that the good intentions make up for what happened. I don't think they should have been out knocking doors at 10:30 p.m. and then leaving, even after the person inside says "who's there?". My wife made a good point on this: What if it was your mother? Can anyone honestly say this couldn't scare a person? Could you tell what was left on your porch by looking through a peephole? I guess I should say also, my thought was whether you'd trust any food left on your step by someone who knocked and left. But we get caught up in the good intentions. Forget that burglars knock on doors to see if someone's home, then kick in the back door when there's no response. Forget that random acts do occur. These girls weren't thinking that they could scare someone, but when they did, why didn't they step up? Why didn't their parents? These are neighbors. The girls have been made out to be victims here, and that just seems strange to me. The woman gets made out as "jittery" b/c it put her in the hospital. There's no history listed of a medical condition, but it gets assumed. Do you think the person writing the article wanted you to take sides with the girls or the woman? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 6, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 6, 2005 (edited) The woman sued for more money. The judge only awarded her medical damages. She was awarded nothing for 'pain and suffering'. Greed. Edited February 6, 2005 by ConGregation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General J February 6, 2005 Share General J Member February 6, 2005 (edited) This is my opinion and I am sorry if you disagree with me. But... This story is absolutly ridiculous! Two teenagers do something nice and thoughtful, and they are punished. What kind of messed up values do people carry these days? They chose to skip a dance where there might be "cursing and drinking" to do something they figured as being nice for their neighbors. They could have gone to the dance, gone to the party afterwards, drank, came to their neighbors house and egged it... Maybe that would have been a better way. Heck, if you are going to get sued over it, you might as well have some serious fun with it, right? But Young, home with her own 18-year-old daughter and her elderly mother, said she saw shadowy figures who banged and banged at her door. When she called out, "Who's there?" no one answered. The figures ran off. She thought perhaps they were burglars or some neighbors she had tangled with in the past, she said. I am sure there was some way for that woman to look out and see 2 girls standing on her front porch. If not, maybe she should invest in a peep hole so that she doesn't have a "heart attack" every time someone knocks on her door. As to the 2nd little paragraph - Thought they were neighbors she had tangled with in the past? Oh man, that killed me. If you have to worry about neighbors coming over at 10:30 p.m. enough to think you are having a heart attack, you have some serious problems. Maybe she needs to live in a safehouse, or invest in her own private island. As for that judge... "The judge said that he didn't think the girls acted maliciously but that it was pretty late at night for them to be out." Is 10:30 past that towns curfew? I don't know. I might have to look into it. But, is the judge these girls parents? I do not believe so. They are also 17 and 18. If they would have gone to that dance, I would bet they would have been out a lot later than 10:30. This judge does not deserve to be deciding cases. He contradicts himself when he basically says the girls did nothing wrong, yet awards money to the women. Judge Doug Walker - La Plata County, Durango, CO Just in case you would like to share your opinions with this judge or with that county office. I sure would, and plan on doing so. My fiancee will be doing the same as well. As for the greed subject.. I believe this speaks for itself. Oh, I didn't get my easy million, too bad. Maybe next time... "The victory wasn't sweet," Young said Thursday afternoon. "I'm not gloating about it. I just hope the girls learned a lesson." Indeed they did. Edited February 6, 2005 by General J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 6, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 6, 2005 I appreciate the role of lawyers. But I can guarantee they won't be helping me in stupid lawsuits like this. Its just the comment that "I could get her more" that bothers me. Surely a joke but still disconcerting. Has justice been so blurred in their vision that more money was the right response? Did this woman deserve pain and suffering just because someone knocked on her door? My mother (who is 58) wouldn't have responded like this, thus the claim of 'jittery' (justified, IMO). EVEN IF she had an anxiety attack my mom still wouldn't have sued for more money than medical bills. That would be just rediculous which this is. But to each their own... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrX February 6, 2005 Share mrX GC Alumni February 6, 2005 Purely a joke. A line from "Liar, Liar" to be exact. Anyway, I got caught up in thinking the woman actually had a lawyer until I just re-read it. This all occurred in small claims court, which is generally limited to $2000-$3000 claims, and the last place you'll find most lawyers. Maybe I'm missing it, but it doesn't seem to be a lawyer's greed driving this. Small claims cases are easily started pro se by citizens by just filling out a form. The only thing I'm noticing that suggests a lawyer is the indemnity agreement, which was the girls doing. I still think the woman should not have had to accept anything less than an in-person apology. If your son/daughter breaks a neighbors window, do you send a letter and ask for indemnification? What ever happened to being a good neighbor? (ironically what they thought they were doing in the first place). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kruten February 8, 2005 Share Kruten Member February 8, 2005 Please.... Fix.....such......stupid......lawsuits. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yes, like that time a woman sued a restaurant because she slipped on a spilt drink on the floor. She had thrown the drink at her boyfriend and slipped when leaving. She won with a few hundred thousand dollars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zanapi February 8, 2005 Share Guest zanapi Guests February 8, 2005 I still think the woman should not have had to accept anything less than an in-person apology. If your son/daughter breaks a neighbors window, do you send a letter and ask for indemnification? What ever happened to being a good neighbor? (ironically what they thought they were doing in the first place). <{POST_SNAPBACK}> nothing was broken. there is no law that i can think of making it illegal to knock on someones door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AceMcbanon February 9, 2005 Share AceMcbanon Member February 9, 2005 Come on would you want to go apologize in person, by going over to her house and knocking on her door again!! She will probably have another anxiety attack just hearing the knocks at the door! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Playaa February 9, 2005 Share Playaa Member February 9, 2005 and now time for a counter-suite of defamation of character for calling those girls thieves. I'd say $900 is an appropriate amount. seriously though...that woman has problems. I'd say the girls learned the lesson that some people are morons. A lesson we should all learn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 9, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 9, 2005 seriously though...that woman has problems. I'd say the girls learned the lesson that some people are morons. A lesson we should all learn. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Made me lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoMamma February 9, 2005 Share YoMamma Member February 9, 2005 seriously though...that woman has problems. I'd say the girls learned the lesson that some people are morons. A lesson we should all learn. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> amen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatty February 9, 2005 Share Fatty GC Founder February 9, 2005 I'm not sure how many doors we knocked on or bells we rang and ran and hid in the bushes when we were young....lmao! Here's the question I would present: would this have gone to court 20 years ago? If not, have our laws of liability changed or our eagerness to collect increase? X is right tho, the article makes these kids look like victims very well. None of us were there, nor saw how scary things really might have been for an old lady. Purposefully or not, if they causes her to have an anxiety attack, why would they have to pay for the bills that follow? If I walked up with a plate of cookies and...oh nvmd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation February 10, 2005 Author Share ConGregation Member February 10, 2005 clarification. *empty* plate of cookies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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