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  • SATURDAY FEBRUARY 5 2005 12:31 PM

Neighborly Act Results in $900 Fine

Submitted by SquidProQuo

Edited by SquidProQuo

Two Colorado teenagers have been ordered to pay $900 in medical and court costs after a gift of cookies and paper hearts caused the recipient to experience anxiety and panic attacks.

Taylor Ostergaard, then 17, and Lindsey Jo Zellitte, 18, paid the judgment on Thursday after a small claims court ruling by La Plata County Court Judge Doug Walker, a court clerk said on Friday.

The girls baked cookies as a surprise for several of their rural Colorado neighbors on July 31 and dropped off small batches on their porches, accompanied by red or pink paper hearts and the message: "Have a great night."

The Denver Post newspaper reported on Friday that the girls had decided to stay home and bake the cookies rather than go to a dance where there might be cursing and drinking.


Forty-nine year old Wanita Renea Young, one of the neighbors who received the cookies, filed suit after being seen in the emergency room of a local hospital the next day. She claims that the gift, left on her doorstep at 10:30 p.m., had frightened her so badly that she thought she had experienced a heart attack.

The judge awarded Young her medical costs, but did not award punitive damages. He said he did not think the girls had acted maliciously but that 10:30 was fairly late at night for them to be out.

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Comments
Rickets

rickets

Seattle, WA
March 2003

FEB 06, 2005 10:33 AM

The moral of this story is that cursing and drinking will save you $900.

obliviousfocus

obliviousfocus

Richmond, KY
January 2004

FEB 06, 2005 10:40 AM

hahahah thats hilarious

ninetysevencents

ninetysevencents

Rochester, NY
August 2003

FEB 06, 2005 10:43 AM

eh. maybe she was just scared that it was an omen.


a fortnight from the day that one doth findith thy free cookies on thy doorstep hither shall come thy cookie monster




edit: damnit. damnit. gromit beat me to it

[Edited on Feb 06, 2005 10:45AM]

Nic

Nic

SUICIDEGIRL

United Kingdom

FEB 06, 2005 11:10 AM

Wow, well that's another nail in the coffin of my faith in humanity.

threejane

threejane

San Francisco, CA
November 2004

FEB 06, 2005 11:15 AM

Spartacus said:
A bunch more stuff



What is the connection between anything you have said so far (re: global injustice, the sky is falling, mobilize the proletariat, W is bad mkay, etc.) and the story at hand, if your claim that this report is manufactured is incorrect? What evidence do you have that this report is manufactured? By "evidence", I do not mean "speculation".

I think some cutting to the chase could go a long way here. Also some paragraph breaks, but that gets filed under "nitpick".

Holy_Mountain

Holy_Mountain

West Palm Beach, FL
February 2004

FEB 06, 2005 11:37 AM

Wow what the hell is the world coming to? surreal

Frenchy

Frenchy

San Francisco, CA
November 2004

FEB 06, 2005 11:43 AM

RadioPortishead said:Wow what the hell is the world coming to? surreal


UUmm, I am not sure the rest of the "world" is like that... Frivolous lawsuits are an American specialty... blackeyed

Genji

Genji

Colorado Springs, CO
October 2004

FEB 06, 2005 02:07 PM

Apparently one of the Denver talk radio stations had a mini call-in telethon and raised the money to pay back the girls. They actually got over a thousand bucks, and donated the rest to charity. So maybe we're not all completely fucked.... Just maybe...

robosagogo

robosagogo

State College, PA
September 2004

FEB 06, 2005 02:35 PM

Look, stuff.

They raised money so they wouldn't have to pay a fine, and the lady says she's gonna hafta leave town.

[Edited on Feb 06, 2005 by robosagogo]

kolacek

kolacek

San Francisco, CA
January 2004

FEB 06, 2005 02:46 PM

They should have tested to see if the plaintiff had been smoking crystal meth. Hello...paranoia? WTF.

KellyLynn

KellyLynn

I'm lost
September 2003

FEB 06, 2005 06:22 PM

ugh. i would never want to do anything nice for anyone ever again after that.

also: 10:30 is too late for 18 year olds to be out? refuckingdiculous. where do they live? in the town from Footloose where it's illegal to dance?

Kayla

Kayla

Dublin, CA
June 2003

FEB 07, 2005 12:57 PM

oops, i'm a few posts too late. whatever tongue

cxd

cxd

I'm lost
January 2005

FEB 07, 2005 01:04 PM

I just heard about this on the radio. So lame!

xo

Christie

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