Articles Posted in Odd Cases

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kidnap-60.jpgThat’s exactly what Lem and Julia Redd of Provo, Utah did. Seems good ‘ole Perry Myers just wasn’t exactly the fella they had in mind for their daughter, Julianna. So, the day before her wedding, they told her they were going shopping (for religious undergarments for the ceremony), but kept right on going to Colorado! Julianna claims that, at a rural gas station, they used force to get her back in the minivan. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING? We’ll never come home? Well, they came home the next day. The wedding took place a few days later. (The couple has since had a child.)

As you might expect, the parents were charged with kidnapping. Do you think Julianna forgave them, after they apologized on national TV? No way. Here are a few of her comments:

We have to protect our new baby. I don’t trust my mom.

I’m past forgiveness. I can’t do anything more. They’ll have to (show) accountability.

[This case] clarifies to society that you can’t do this because you’re a parent and you want to. You’re accountable, no matter who you are.

And what do the relatives have to say?

Lem Redd, Bride’s Father: “We have made an apology and said that what we did was incorrect, but we feel this is definitely wrong.” Dude, you kidnapped your 21-year-old daughter. You expected a $50 fine?

Julia Redd, Bride’s Mother: “We don’t carry any animosity for her, we don’t have any animosity towards Perry or his family. We don’t know them or him, we were hoping to get to know him better.” You don’t know him? And you still did this? And let me get this straight: You, the kidnapper, don’t “have any animosity towards Perry?” Okay, my head stopped spinning. Go with an “insanity” plea.

Although the Redds are clearly ready to forgive themselves, the groom’s family is not of the same mind.

[Read on to see what happened to the Redds.]

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The Japanese authorities REALLY screwed this one up. Suspecting vote-buying in the small Japanese town of Shibushi, they launched a major investigation. The results: 13 arrests of men and women in their 50s, 60s and 70s. Six of them confessed to buying votes with liquor, cash and parties. Now there was just one problem – a judge concluded that their confessions WERE FABRICATED , and that the defendants “made confessions in despair while going through marathon questioning.” He acquitted all of them on all of the charges. But this came to late for one man, who died during the trial. Another man tried to kill himself by jumping into a river (after being rescued, he confessed!) It’s incredible what these people went through before the house of cards collapsed. One man spent 395 days in jail. His wife was jailed for 273 days. The village postmaster was held in a windowless cell for 186 days. Her daughter had to quit her job to tend to the post office!
So what happened to the police in Shibushi who were responsible for this injustice? Zippy. Squawdoosh. Nada.

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overdose.jpgIn a recent case from Australia, two 20-year-old men, Robert Karaca and Jarred Royce Price, were charged with attempted murder. Their “victim” was a 32-year-old friend of theirs named Bruce Levin, who was intent on killing himself, and convinced them to help.

Levin spoke of overdosing on sleeping tablets. If that failed, he wanted to be hit on the back of the head with a steel bar. Oh, and he threw in more than $5,000. (That’d be a little less than $5,000 U.S., but, still, nothing that a couple of broke 20-year-olds would scoff at.)

When Levin’s sleeping pills appeared not to work, Karaca couldn’t bring himself to hit Levin with the pole, so Price was asked to do it. Apparently, Levin thanked them profusely before he was hit and then suddenly had a change of heart – after he was hit twice, he laid still and played dead to avoid being hit again.

Thinking Levin was dead, his pals took off. A bloodied Levin got his wounds stitched at the hospital. A remorseful Karaca told the police what they had done.

So, what happened to them?

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Because then he could blackmail them! Fifty-year-old San Antonio, Texas lawyer Ted Roberts coaxed some serious cashish from an accountant, a lawyer, and two executives who had the pleasure of Mary Roberts’ company. Old Ted threatened to tell their wives and employers if they didn’t pony up. bribery.bmp

And pony up they did, to the tune of $155,000. But it was for a good cause, right Ted? The jury found that, after assuring 2 of the men that he would donate the money to a children’s charity, Ted instead used it to help pay for a new house and to fund his law practice. The good news for Ted? The jury acquitted him on 2 of the charges because one of the victims said he didn’t care where his money went, and the other said he knew it would be used to repay Ted for his start-up costs (paying the private investigator to get the goods). Surely Ted sees the error of his ways? Nope. Said Ted to the Court:

It is incredible to me after I sought protection from the law that … I face sentencing without having committed a crime.

Huh? And for good measure, the prosecutor brought in a teacher who claimed Ted said in 2005 that he would represent her for free, if only she’d share “deep, dark,” sexual secrets about the city’s movers and shakers. Said the prosecutor:

This is who you have before you … Somebody who wants sexual secrets and then wants to use them against people to blackmail and extort them.

What do you think the judge’s sentence was? Continue reading →

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Now you all know how I dislike the term “frivolous lawsuit.” But prosecutor Karen Richards is knee-deep in frivolity. karen%20richards.jpg In Allen County, Indiana, law professor Joel Schumm was ticketed for an “improper taillight.” jschumm.jpg He fought the ticket, arguing that police department guidelines called for a warning. Oh, and the officer who wrote the ticket was on drunken-driving patrol, and was required to write at least one ticket per hour.

So what happened at trial? Schumm lost, and the Judge fined him $100. And he paid the $100? Please. You know he appealed. And what happened on appeal?

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Especially if she’s 77, and you’re 48. Otis Freshwater, of Marion, Indiana, was convicted of robbing his mother at knifepoint – of $107.00. mommy-boy-blond.jpg He faces 10 years for armed robbery, and 18 months for breaking into his mother’s house. I’m thinking the other inmates won’t take to kindly to a guy who robs his own mom.knife.bmp

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Yup. When Rachel Monk, a 24-year-old Scottish woman with cerebal palsy, wanted to get a tattoo, the first establishment she and her family tried was up a flight of steps. Since Ms. Monk is in a wheelchair, she was referred to another tattoo parlor. At that establishment, called Body Creation, the owner told her

We don’t do people like you.

Me thinks they will now. A discrimination claim was filed. The Disability Rights Commision awarded Ms. Monk £2,500 ($5,000), stating

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telemarketer.pngRobert Johnson REALLY wanted to be a telemarketer. The only problem? He is missing 18 teeth. But Johnson wasn’t going to let that stop him. He applied for a telemarketing position, went through three days of training, and received generally positive evaluations from the telemarketer. Everything seemed to be going so well… until Johnson was let go because he “mumbled on the phone and was not a ‘good match’ for the job.”
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So Johnson sued the telemarketer under the American’s with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”). Describing his condition as a “cosmetic disfigurement consisting of some prominently visible absent front teeth,” Johnson claimed that his rejection was a pretext for discrimination. The federal district court didn’t buy the argument, so Johnson appealed.

What happened?

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