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SUING A 7-YEAR-OLD
http://www.clevescene.com/issues/2005-02-09/news/firstpunch.html ^ | February 11, 2005

Posted on 02/11/2005 11:21:34 AM PST by UpHereEh

As a general rule, suing a seven-year-old won't score you any points with St. Peter. But Mary Ellen Michaels and her lawyer, Judson Hawkins, already have guaranteed reservations at the Burning Lake of Fire Spa & Resort. Our saga began when Michaels was rollerblading down a Metroparks bike path in Strongsville last spring. She came upon a seven-year-old riding a bike. Behind the boy was his grandma, who was watching him while his parents were on a trip to New Orleans.

Michaels yelled at the boy to get out of the way. The kid stopped his bike, giving Michaels barely enough room to pass. She tried to squeeze through, but never made it. The toe of her rollerblade caught the bike's rear wheel. Michaels' leg snapped, and her foot twisted 180 degrees. "This was a serious injury," says Hawkins.

Most people would chalk it up to bad luck. What are you gonna do, sue a seven-year-old?

Well, if you're Mary Ellen Michaels, yes.

And just to secure her future in the Land of 1,000 Screams, she also sued Grandma and the boy's parents, who were a thousand miles away at the time.

The boy's lawyer politely notes that this was a bad move. "Basically, what we said is that even if you accept everything she says as fact, she still doesn't have a case," says Patrick Roche. Translation in non-lawyerspeak: "What the %$#@ is wrong with you, Mary Ellen?"

Both the trial and the appellate courts tossed the case. But that doesn't mean the kid's getting off scot-free. Michaels directed her lawyer to fight all the way to the Ohio Supreme Court. "I don't take frivolous cases," says Hawkins, whose hobbies presumably include stealing old people's medicine and torturing kittens. "I did considerable research before I sued a seven-year-old. Given the nature of the injury, I thought it merited a lawsuit."


TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: lawsuit; suehappy; tortreform; tortreformnow
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To: UpHereEh

Lemme see. Kid was on his bike, on a designated public bike path. B!tch comes barrelling through on her rollerblades, and instead of stopping or slowing down when she sees a boy on a bike in her path, she keeps going and hollers at him to get out of the way. He tries (thus proving that he did not violate the well-established "last clear chance" doctrine of responsibility for accident avoidance) but fails to make way for her, and she chooses to plow into the bike with a kid on it, rather than into some unmanned obstacle she could have chosen as an alternative, and seriously injures herself in the process.

He should be suing her for putting a dent in his bike. And she should be d&mn glad HE wasn't seriously injured, or she'd be facing a *serious* lawsuit.

And whatever law school graduated her sorry excuse for a lawyer should think about revoking that diploma.


161 posted on 02/16/2005 10:44:56 AM PST by GovernmentShrinker
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To: bikepacker67
I'm not a fan of litigiousness, but shouldn't lil' Johnny be practicing his cycling skills in a driveway or sidewalk? Bike paths are not unlike roadways

I would say the best place to practice riding a bike is a bike path however if you are on rollerblades you should stay off the bike paths you might run into a bike on a bike path and break your leg

162 posted on 02/16/2005 10:48:37 AM PST by freepatriot32 (Jacques Chirac and Kofi Annan, a pantomime horse in which both men are playing the rear end. M.Steyn)
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To: LouD
That reminds me of a funny story from the annals of the US Navy:

Two battleships assigned to the training squadron had been at sea on maneuvers in heavy weather for several days. I was serving on the lead battleship and was on watch on the bridge as night fell. The visibility was poor with patchy fog, so the captain remained on the bridge keeping an eye on all activities.

Shortly after dark, the lookout on the wing reported, “Light, bearing on the starboard bow.”

“Is it steady or moving astern?” the captain called out.

The lookout replied, “Steady, Captain,” which meant we were on a dangerous collision course with that ship.

The captain then called to the signalman, “Signal that ship: ‘We are on a collision course, advise you change course twenty degrees.’”

Back came the signal, “Advisable for you to change course twenty degrees.”

The captain said, “Send: “I’m a captain, change course twenty degrees.’”

“I’m a seaman second-class,” came the reply. “You had better change course twenty degrees.”

By that time the captain was furious. He spat out, “Send: ‘I’m a battleship. Change course twenty degrees.’”

Back came the flashing light, “I’m a lighthouse.”

We changed course.


163 posted on 02/16/2005 11:00:12 AM PST by TChris (Most people's capability for inference is severely overestimated)
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To: UpHereEh

I love that they published her full name- gee, wonder if her phone has been ringing today! lol


164 posted on 02/16/2005 11:33:53 AM PST by richmwill
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To: bikepacker67

Well, then why was she rollerblading on a bike path? Who said anything about the kid "teetering"? She may of startled him causing him to swerve, thus causing this accident. Seven year old on a bike, on a bike path takes out evil Biatch on rollerblades. Good for him, and I hope sane heads prevail all the way up to the Supreme Court.

Then countersue the biatch for all the grief and suffering she has caused this family.

Cheers!


165 posted on 02/16/2005 11:37:38 AM PST by SZonian (Tagline???? I don't need no stinkin' tagline!)
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To: You Dirty Rats; HolgerDansk

These are the types of riders that give our sport a black eye and bad name. We're not all like that.

Cheers!


166 posted on 02/16/2005 11:46:37 AM PST by SZonian (Tagline???? I don't need no stinkin' tagline!)
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To: finnman69

I take offense to that remark. When I am on the bike path - the bladers I see are acting responsible. Calling out "on your left" to the bicylists riding 2 or 3 abreast across a path. A path that has been marked in paint as divided for each way of traffic. The same bladers who then have to call out "approaching" and then also stop so that the bicylists can move over back into their lane.

And the only incident I've been involved with is when I was rollarblading and oncoming traffic was heavy. So i was very slowly following some walkers. A bicylist came from behind and rode straight into my ankles - causing me to crash and fall off the path. I then was cussed out. Thankfully - the walkers pointed out the bicylist's stupidity and he rode away.


167 posted on 02/16/2005 11:59:13 AM PST by WomanBiologist
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To: UpHereEh

It would seem to me that a reasonable expectation of folks using a bike path is that some bikes would be going fast and some slow, and that there was a possibility that walkers would be using the path. If the boy was stopped and she ripped by him, it's nobody's fault but her own. If he had suddenly veered out into her path, even with her warning, she might have a modest argument for negligence, but we are talking about a little kid on a bike.

Kind of like if you are driving and someone is driving slower than they should due to car trouble or whatever. If you aren't paying attention and rear end the vehicle, it's your fault and not theirs.

Frankly, I hope she's getting spammed a bit for this one.


168 posted on 02/16/2005 12:19:08 PM PST by Wicket (God bless and protect our troops and God bless America)
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To: WomanBiologist

Sorry you are offended but after extensively biking (and running) for 15 years in Central Park I have the following observations:

1. Bikers tend to ride in a straight line while bladers tend to skate with a sideways motion that generally takes more space than a biker in single file. Bladers tend to sway arms and enlarge their footprint. Passing them can be dangerous as you are not sure if they will swing out their arms or legs as you pass them. Therefore generally I need to pass them by a wider margin to avoid situations like your accident you described.

2. Most cyclists wear helmets. Most bladers do not wear helmets and many wear no protective gear at all. The Lenox Hill Hospital near Central Park is filled every weekend with rollerblading injuries.

3. Cyclists have mechanical brakes while bladers only have friction brakes. If you have a cyclist and a blader traveling at the same speed, a cyclist can generally stop in a much shorter distance. Especially on hills, cyclists are in far more control than bladers although the speed of cyclists can be excessive. The % of rollerbladers with the skill to make quickturn stops is very small. Many bladers have to awkwardly lift and drag a leg to stop, throwing off their balance.

4. I have seen many serious accidents involving cyclists, bladers, joggers but the majority of the serious injuries always involve rollerbladers. Lots of road rash. Again, many of them are not wearing helmets.

5. Cyclists tend not to ride side by side but in small packs or in single file. I have seen bladers skate 3-4 abreast effectively blocking 2 full lanes of traffic. These are the weekend skaters who tend to be less skilled and more prone to get into accidents.


Are there bad cyclists who cause accidents and ride dangerously, yes. Are there good cyclists who get in accidents, yes. But my point is blading takes up more space on the road, bladers tend to be in less control, are unable to stop in a shorter space and


169 posted on 02/16/2005 12:59:38 PM PST by finnman69 (cum puella incedit minore medio corpore sub quo manifestus globus, inflammare animos)
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To: UpHereEh
Michaels was rollerblading down a Metroparks bike path
I think this says it all! A BIKE path!
170 posted on 02/16/2005 1:49:56 PM PST by Chili Girl
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To: mhking

just damn


171 posted on 02/16/2005 2:18:36 PM PST by King Prout (Remember John Adam!)
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To: Gorzaloon
How old is this bitch? One day too old.

My guess: 20 to 23. Self-centered and vindictive.

172 posted on 02/16/2005 2:31:54 PM PST by AK2KX
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To: finnman69

otoh, a set of blading coeds can make for a lovely view for a biker on a broad path...

sigh...


173 posted on 02/16/2005 2:41:27 PM PST by King Prout (Remember John Adam!)
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To: King Prout

that's different but still dangerous....I can relate

I got in a fender bender bike-bike collision because I was trying to get a better look at the rear view of a female cyclist. My bad....


174 posted on 02/16/2005 2:43:43 PM PST by finnman69 (cum puella incedit minore medio corpore sub quo manifestus globus, inflammare animos)
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To: finnman69

once, I rode my Nishiki Pueblo into a brick wall due to a similar visual distraction - a pedestrian, that time. damn, she was fine...


175 posted on 02/16/2005 4:44:34 PM PST by King Prout (Remember John Adam!)
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