Isabelle Hood
Picture yourself being stuck in jail and having so much time to think that you end up suing yourself! This is exactly what Robert Lee Brock, an inmate from Indian Creek Correctional Center, did in 1995. Brock blamed himself for violating his own civil rights. How? Well, he chose to drink alcohol, even though his religion forbade it. This led him to commit crimes like breaking and entering and grand larceny. He was very angry with himself for this.
Brock didn’t just stop there. He asked for a whopping $5 million from himself as compensation. But there was a twist – he wanted the state to pay this money. His argument was that he was under the state’s care, so it should be the state’s responsibility. Sounds a bit odd, right?
Unsurprisingly, the court didn’t agree with Brock’s unusual claim. His case was quickly thrown out. So, in the end, Brock didn’t get the money he hoped for. But he sure gave everyone a good laugh with his unique legal strategy!
Think about this for a second. In 2018, three people from New York and Mississippi discovered something shocking about their favorite candy, Junior Mints. Biola Daniel, Abel Duran, and Trekeela Perkins found that more than a third of the box was empty. They believed that Tootsie Roll Industries Inc, the maker of Junior Mints, was tricking people. They decided to sue the company.
They were not just upset about missing out on some candy. It was about fairness. They felt that Tootsie Roll Industries Inc was fooling candy lovers by not filling the boxes fully. They were upset that customers didn’t get as many mints as they expected from the boxes. So, they took the matter to court.
However, the judge didn’t agree with them. After considering the case, he wrote a long 44-page decision. He concluded that customers can reasonably expect some empty space in the box. The judge dismissed the case. In the end, Tootsie Roll Industries Inc didn’t have to change anything, and the story about the lawsuit over Junior Mints boxes ended.
