Allegedly True Stories From The 4th Estate

A Jackson, Mississippi, man filed a lawsuit last September against Oxford University Press for its publication of the Bible. In the $45 million dollar suit, Joel Ford alleged that the Bible was based on hearsay and that it oppresses blacks and gays. Ford dropped the suit shortly thereafter due to threats against his life. (Times- Picayune-AP) A Roanoke, Virginia, man has sued his palm reader, "Miss Stella," for her failure to give him the winning lottery numbers she promised. Plaintiff Warren Smith requests $3 million for the jackpot that he would have won, plus punitive damages of $350,000 and actual damages of $75,724 (for Miss Stella's fees and losing lottery tickets). (AP) Pamela Baker requested a Beaufort, South Carolina, judge to excuse her from jury duty because her husband, a Baptist pastor, has forbidden her to speak in public. (Post & Courier) Sari Zayed is suing the Davis, California, city council for lost wages, medical expenses, and emotional distress suffered when her citation for violation of the city's noise ordinance was publicized worldwide. Her neighbor, Chris Doherty, filed several complaints about her "audible snoring," claiming that the sound penetrated the thin duplex wall which separated them and kept him awake at night. After she made world headlines and even had her snoring recorded through Doherty's wall by a television crew, the city council determined that snoring was not a "willful act," as required by the ordinance, and her case was dismissed. (AP) Washington, D.C. police and federal drug agents called off an elaborately-planned raid of a notorious drug dealer hangout after the local housing department distributed a press release about the raid the night before. The D.C. Department of Public and Assisted Housing sent out a press release which was circulated on the AP newswire and broadcasted repeatedly on local radio stations. The raid, which had been in the works for several months, was canceled when one of the 200 agents mentioned during the pre-raid briefing that he had heard about the raid on the radio as he was driving to the briefing. (Washington Post) An Ontario man says that he intends to sue prison officials for the harsh treatment he received when he was caught after escaping. Convicted murderer Allen Kinsella said that a ladder which was left behind by a construction crew and not removed by prison officials, gave him the idea that he could leave. (Kingston Whig-Standard) No more access to California state court for Fred Whitaker. An Oakland judge ended Whitaker's free access after he filed his 23rd "frivolous" petition in that court, out of 40 overall in the state court system since 1987. His previous lawsuits include a claim against a grocery store which accepted his 30¢ coupon on Mug Root Beer and then charged sales tax, which lowered his actual discount to 28 cents. (San Francisco Examiner) $1,000,000,000 will be given to anyone who sends us an interesting law related story that we can use. ----- Brought to you by - The 'Lectric Law Library The Net's Finest Legal Resource For Legal Pros & Laypeople Alike. http://www.lectlaw.com