2003 Stella Award Candidates
[Candidates
for the annual "Stella Awards" 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. The following are
this year's 7 Stella Award Winners candidates…]
1. Kathleen Robertson of Austin, Texas, was awarded $780,000 by a jury of her peers after
breaking her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running inside a furniture store. The
owners of the store were understandably surprised at the verdict, considering the
misbehaving little toddler was Ms. Robertson's son…
2. A 19-year-old Carl Truman of Los Angeles won $74,000 and medical expenses when his
neighbor ran over his hand with a Honda Accord. Mr. Truman apparently didn't notice there
was someone at the wheel of the car when he was trying to steal his neighbor's hub
caps…
3. 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 couldn't re-enter the house because the door
connecting the house and garage locked when he pulled it shut. The family was on vacation,
and Mr. Dickson found himself locked in the garage for eight days. He subsisted on a case
of Pepsi he found, and a large bag of dry dog food. He sued the homeowner's insurance
claiming the situation caused him undue mental anguish. The jury agreed to the tune of
$500,000…
4. 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. 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 just a little provoked at the time by Mr. Williams who was shooting it
repeatedly with a pellet gun…
5. 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. The beverage was on the
floor because Ms. Carson had thrown it at her boyfriend 30 seconds earlier during an
argument…
6. Kara Walton of Claymont, Delaware, successfully sued the owner of a night club in a
neighboring city when she fell from the bathroom window to the floor and knocked out her
two front teeth. This occurred while Ms. Walton was trying to sneak out without paying her
check, awarded $12,000 and dental expenses…
7. Merv Grazinski of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma purchased a brand new 32-foot Winnebago motor
home. On his first trip home, 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 R.V. left the road. The owner's manual did not say that he
couldn't actually do this. The jury awarded him $1,750,000 plus a new 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…