Legal Humour News - May 17, 2010

Odd or Amusing Legal Headlines from the Past Week (or Two):

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1 - See You In Court!

Official who sued self can run for office
A Connecticut official has won the right to run for state attorney general after she had to sue herself to prove her qualifications. A superior court judge ruled that Democratic Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz had enough experience as a lawyer to run. A Democratic blogger had suggested she did not have the required 10 years of active legal experience, so Bysiewicz sued her own office and state Democrats.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2010/05/05/13833591.html

U.S. rights group sues to protect right to swear
The ACLU is suing the police in Pennsylvania for issuing tickets, which carry a jail sentence, to people for swearing. The American rights group argues that the right to use profanity is protected by the U.S. Constitution.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64D3D820100514

2 - Crime and Punishment

Penis mockery allegedly led to airport beating
A Miami International Airport employee has been arrested for allegedly beating a co-worker with an expandable police baton for mocking the size of his penis, the Miami Herald reports. A few months ago, co-workers watched as Rolando Negrin tested the airport's full-body imaging machine. According to the newspaper, Negrin endured months of ridicule before he allegedly snapped and attacked a male co-worker in the airport parking lot.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2010/05/07/13861516.html

Lord Jesus Christ hit by car
The victim might have forgiven the woman who ran him down in a Massachusetts crosswalk, but police haven’t. Police say a Pittsfield woman has been cited for running down a man named Lord Jesus Christ as he crossed a street in Northampton. The 50-year-old man is from Belchertown. Officers checked his ID and discovered that, indeed, his legal name is Lord Jesus Christ. He was taken to the hospital for treatment of minor facial injuries.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2010/05/07/13858511.html

3 - Politics, Law, and Governance

Italy hosts its first divorce fair
Italy is holding its first divorce fair, offering services such as life coaching and beauty advice to a booming number of separating couples in the Catholic country. The services include divorce planning, anti-stalking help, and "new look" tips.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64455520100505

Irish sellers of "legal highs" face life in jail
Ireland's government approved tough new legislation to crack down on "legal highs" available at so-called 'head shops' by threatening operators of the popular stores with life imprisonment. Under the new legislation, the sale or supply of substances that do not specifically fall under existing drugs legislation, but which have "psychoactive effects" will land users with up to 7 years in prison and suppliers with a maximum life sentence.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64A4RD20100511

Half of Russians believe bribery solves "problems"
More than half of Russians think bribing officials is the best way to "solve problems," according to a new poll. Fifty-five percent of respondents to a Levada Center poll of 1,600 Russians said they believed that "bribes are given by everyone who comes across officials" in Russia.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64C1ZD20100513

New Zealand PM roasted over cannibalism joke
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key found himself in hot water after joking about an indigenous tribe eating him for dinner. Key has been at loggerheads with a Maori tribe, the Tuhoe, over negotiations to settle their grievances over land confiscations by European settlers in the 19th century. During a speech to a tourism conference, Key joked about having dinner with the neighbouring Ngati Porou tribe, or iwi. "The good news is that I was having dinner with Ngati Porou as opposed to their neighbouring iwi which is Tuhoe, in which case I would have been dinner, which wouldn't have been quite so attractive," Key said.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/100513/oddities/nzealand_politics_maori

4 - And Now for Something Completely Different

Office survival guide sees humour in job misery
Sometime during the recession, work -- or the lack of it -- became funny. From oversleeping and missing a job interview to being fired for no reason, job woes are now a great source of humour, say Gregory Bergman and Jodi Miller, authors of "WTF? Work: How to Survive 101 of the Office's Worst F*#!-ing Situations," a new book that offers tongue-in-cheek job advice.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE63S4DA20100429

Driver's thumbs insured for $13 million
Double world champion Fernando Alonso gave a 10 million euro ($13.33 million) thumbs-up to future Formula One success with Ferrari. Team sponsors Santander said they had insured the Spaniard's thumbs for five million each as part of a publicity campaign for accident and life insurance ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE63P4GL20100426