-----Original Message-----
From: Dan Crook
Sent: Tuesday, February 01, 2005 12:14 PM
To: dance@ssqq.com
Subject: Lawsuit response

Just a note - I read your article and wanted to give you an example of something I had seen take place while in college. In 1985 I worked in Greeley, CO for United Lumber - we had a 8' fence with barbed wire at the top surrounding the facility. The building was equivalent to a 2 story block structure and had flood lighting. A burglar got over the fence, scaled the building by grabbing onto the gutter downspout and made it to the top.

He then managed to get the grate off the exhaust fan, dismantled that and crawled through the vent line inside the building. At one point his weight was too much and he fell through and landed on some molding in a display.

One section of the molding pierced his leg and he could not move. When the owner arrived he found this guy in a pool of blood smoking a cigarette and called 911.

Shortly after the burglar's arrest he filed a lawsuit claiming that if the exhaust grate had been reinforced so no entry could be gained this would not have taken place. The case went to court and a jury was summoned. The burglar won on this one contention, not in the millions but in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Ever since I witnessed this event I will never trust a jury to give a fair judgment - it's not their money nor can you trust people with this kind of judgment.

Just FYI - Have a good week -

Dan Crook

(Editor's Note: "Crook". Hmm. What a curious name for a contributor!! -:)  

I have no evidence to prove whether this story is true or perhaps an urban legend. I will simply say I found his email to have a ring of truth to it, so I shared with everyone else. Thank you, Mr. Crook)