“Save the Baby” Medicine Cautions It Won’t Save Babies

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According to the Lancaster Medical Heritage Museum, Lee’s Save the Baby, made by William W. Lee & Co. in the early 1900s, was a children’s cough suppressant to be applied externally to the chest area (although the back cover of the box pictured here said it could be used “Externally or Internally”). The main ingredients included camphor.

Gotta love the foresight to include the disclaimer stating:

The name “Save-The-Baby” is not intended to imply that the product will save babies …

The Lancaster medical museum says:

“The liquid medication has a dark yellow color and it is contained in a glass bottle with a red screw on cap. … The original formula of this product died with Ester Lee in 1974, the last member of the Lee Family.”

Wacky Personal Injury Sticker: Injured? Good!

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We’ve all seen the billboards and city benches and bumper stickers, etc., bearing advertisements from plaintiffs’ personal injury lawyers along the lines of:

INJURED? You may be entitled to compensation. Call Tammy the Terminator today for a free consultation!

But walking to a gym last week, I passed a car with this sticker on the rear window:

INJURED? GOOD

Yikes! Surely it’s a joke … I hope. If anyone recognizes the two dudes pictured, let me know.

Motion to file Box of Crayons

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When you come across a motion to file a box of crayons in a case seeking a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, you just have to know more.  Specifically, why are the lawyers asking “FOR LEAVE TO FILE ONE PACKET OF CRAYOLA COLORED PENCILS”?

(I borrowed this from the Facebook page of a former student of mine at the Florida International University College of Law.)

Praise for ‘Funeral Daze’

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McClurg’s New Novel: FUNERAL DAZE. Check it out on Amazon.

Praise For McClurg’s (aka Dorian Box) Funeral Daze

“FUNERAL DAZE by Dorian Box manages to be laugh-out-loud funny, heartwarmingly tender, and full of lively action and suspense, all at once—a thoroughly entertaining and engaging read.” — IndieReader (5 Stars; IR Seal of Approval)

“Funeral Daze is a novel that takes both light and dark elements to present a fantastically engaging, emotionally resonant story in a deeply humorous and satirical fashion. Unmissable reading.” — 2023 Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal for Humor Fiction)

“A hilarious page-turner that effortlessly blends crime, humor and South Florida beach culture. … Award-winning author Dorian Box (Psycho Tropics, The Hiding Girl) has always employed brilliant doses of well-timed levity in crime fiction, but he pulls out all the stops for this laugh-out-loud caper.” — BestThrillers

“The story unfolds at a crisp and steady pace, with plenty of thought-provoking moments once 12-year-old Jessica enters the scene, offering Danny surprisingly mature reflections on tragedy and a knockout mystery to occupy his time. … Funeral Daze delivers an appealing spin on the mystery genre through rich characterization and an abundance of insight throughout.” — Publishers Weekly BookLife Prize Seminfinalist

“A perfect beach read, this zany mystery has the thrills, quirky characters, juicy plot twists, and gripping conclusion you’re looking for!” — Reedsy Discovery

“Time and again, Box has proven he can write a tense thriller that is funny, dark, and completely endearing. It’s the perfect combination of a smart storyline and characters that keep you reading well after bedtime. Fantastic!” — NetGalley

“Funeral Daze is a macabre and hilarious novel that intersects the lives of several bizarre and oddly compelling characters. … Dorian Box masterfully directs the story into a series of unpredictable and uproarious events that are deliciously ironic, unexpectedly thought-provoking, and always edgy and dark.” — D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

And don’t forget McClurg’s (Box’s) other award-winning novels.

Forged License Plate Is Art for Art’s Sake

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This effort to forge a license plate’s vehicle registration renewal sticker must have been art for art’s sake, because it surely had no chance of fooling anyone.

Bartlett is an incorporated suburb of Memphis. The Bartlett police recently posted this picture on their Facebook feed.

Give them credit for their sense of humor. “Nice try, but no,” they said.

Wacky Warning: Do Not Mow Rocks

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Help me figure out this wacky warning/instruction sign in a bed of stones that says “Do Not Mow.” Comes via a friend of a Facebook friend.

Possibilities:

  1. The property owner recently redid the landscaping and replaced the grass with rocks.
  2. The property owner lacks confidence in the skill and judgment of the person or company responsible for maintaining the landscaping.
  3. The property owner’s lawyer is one of my former Torts students to whom I taught the adage, “Tort law is a world where everything that can go wrong does.”

McClurg Interviewed for “Criminal” Podcast Re “Mantraps”

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“Criminal,” the highly rated podcast of true crime stories run by former NPR reporters, interviewed me for its newest episode called “Mantrap.” It addresses civil liability for harm caused by deadly booby traps set to protect uninhabited property. Here’s a link to the website podcast and here’s a link to all of the links where the podcast can be heard (e.g., Spotify, Google Play, iTunes, etc.).

My contribution involved one of my favorite tort law cases, Katko v. Briney, the infamous Iowa spring-gun case.

Plaintiff Marvin Katko broke into Ed and Bertha Briney’s uninhabited farmhouse in Eddyville, Iowa, in search of old jars and bottles he considered to be antiques, only to have his leg blown off by a shotgun wired to a bed in one of the bedrooms. The Brineys were fed up with people breaking into the house, which had stood empty for years, so they wired a shotgun to an inside door.

The court described the shotgun-trap as follows:

“After Mr. Briney cleaned and oiled his 20-gauge shotgun, the power of which he was well aware, defendants took it to the old house where they secured it to an iron bed with the barrel pointed at the bedroom door. It was rigged with wire from the doorknob to the gun’s trigger so it would fire when the door was opened. Briney first pointed the gun so an intruder would be hit in the stomach but at Mrs Briney’s suggestion it was lowered to hit the legs.” (Emphasis added.)

(In a previous post, I describe, image included, the amazing claim by the current property owner that he is in possession of the actual wire used for the trap.)

Katko sued the Brineys and—despite the fact that he broke into their farmhouse with an intent to steal—won a substantial jury verdict for both compensatory and punitive damages. Unable to pay it, the Brineys had to sell eighty acres of their farm to three neighbors who agreed to hold it in trust for the Brineys in the expectation that the Iowa Supreme Court would reverse the trial court’s judgment for Katko. But that didn’t happen. The judgment was affirmed on the ground that deadly force cannot be used to protect property only.

Criminal’s new podcast explores the Briney case along with a few other “mantrap” cases.

Tips for How NOT to Move a Washer and Dryer

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At lawhaha.com, we love what we call “rolling torts,” also known as “accidents waiting to happen.” A rolling tort consists of an effort to move large objects via a vehicle in a way that creates an unreasonable danger to other motorists.

Courtesy of a former student, here we find a valiant effort to transport a full-size washer and dryer with a compact car. To the driver’s credit, the elaborate straps show a solid effort to arrive at the destination without disaster.

More rolling torts can be found scattered through these pages, including here, here, and here.

The Eminent Domain Power Explained in a Child’s Drawing

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“Eminent domain” is the power of federal and state governments to “take” private property for public use. In 1879, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the power “requires no constitutional recognition” because it is an inherent power of sovereign governments. But governments can’t just take your property without paying for it. The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that no private property can be taken “without just compensation.” Here’s a good history of it.

The Fifth Amendment eminent domain clause is often called “the taking clause,” for obvious reasons. While it only applies to federal actions, all states provide for the power of eminent domain in legislation and/or their state constitutions.

Through the years, lawyers and judges have spent untold hours litigating thousands of eminent domain cases. Many legal treatises addressing the doctrine exist, including the definitive Nichols on Eminent Domain.

But leave it a child to unravel this complex doctrine in a single illustration. This comes from the daughter of two former law students of mine, who gave me permission to post it. I love the expressions on the characters’ faces. Even the getaway horse looks slightly nefarious. And the constable’s words capture the doctrine beautifully: “Hold it right there! I have the right to borrow your horse! If I injure it I will pay a fair price for it. Hurry please! Before that escapee gets away!”