It's Here: The First Stupid Lawsuit of '09! Elderly Ohio woman arrested for confiscating a kid's ball is suing her neighbors

By  ELIZABETH BOUGEROL

Updated 11:06 PM EDT, Tue, Jan 6, 2009

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The first notable stupid-lawsuit was filed by an 88-year-old woman who says she suffered emotional distress when her neighbors had her arrested after she refused to return a football that their kid kept flinging into her yard.

 

The new Great Depression may put a swift end to spending, mortgages, jobs, ice cream, ponies, and the happiness of all mankind, but you know what just keeps chugging along like the Energizer Bunny? Stupid, hair-trigger litigiousness! Totally impervious to recession!

The first notable stupid-lawsuit item of the new year comes to us from Blue Ash, Ohio, where an 88-year-old woman (or is she 89? Make up your mind, Ohio.com) -- whose neighbors had her arrested for theft after she refused to return a football that their kid kept flinging into her yard -- is now suing said neighbors because the whole thing has caused her "emotional distress."

The boy's parents are worried because they have five kids and can't afford a lawyer (maybe they should have thought of this when they had their elderly neighbor frogmarched down to the Blue Ash precinct over a football? Just saying).

And they probably should be worried, because 1) if there's one thing 88- (or 89-)year-olds have nothing but time and energy for, it's holding petty grudges, and 2) the plaintiff's name is Edna Jester, so you just know she's a tenacious bundle of crochety old-lady business like that upstairs neighbor in the awful Ben Stiller/Drew Barrymore real-estate "comedy" Duplex.

Copyright NBC Local Media / NBC New York

Comments (45)

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  • Flu-Bird Friday, May 15 at 1:02 AM FLAG COMMENT Its time those little brats and the parents payed some respect to their elders and quit being such a bunch of little snots
  • Flu-Bird Wednesday, Mar 4 at 12:20 AM FLAG COMMENT Expect to see more rediculous lawsuits with the demacrats running everything
  • lawgirl Wednesday, Jan 28 at 4:54 PM FLAG COMMENT I don't even understand why she was arrested for theft. The ball was on her property because the owner of that ball put it on her property and it almost sound intentional. If I was her I would sue the police agency for wrongful arrest. I'd liked to know what kind of police officers accepted charges on a 89 year old lady for something like this. Possesion is 9 10ths of the law, I'd say prove it was your ball sonny. Oh and I wou ... MORE >
  • ladybug Wednesday, Jan 28 at 12:56 PM FLAG COMMENT I have kids and I make sure my kids know the boundaries of other's property. Yes accidents happens and kids will be kids. We still need to respect boundaries period that's life.
  • SJ Cynic Thursday, Jan 8 at 12:48 PM FLAG COMMENT I don't think it's a stupid lawsuit. The kids kept tossing the ball into her yard to harass her, not because it was an accident. When she said enough, they had her arrested, as though their kids harassing an old woman was nothing to be concerned about. If they'd put a stop to their kids' harassment, she wouldn't be suing. Plain and simple. I hope she wins. I doubt she'll try to collect - it will be the principle.

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