# The legal system, jurors, and chutzpah. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 11, 2002, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953 "2002-12-11T05:11:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/1 "2002-12-11T05:11:52Z")
According to a [story on CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/12/10/jurors.lawsuit.ap/index.html), _60 Minutes_ ran a program suggesting that jurors in one Mississippi county were guilty of “jackpot justice” and were awarding monetary damages that were too high. Naturally, a couple of the jurors have filed a lawsuit against _60 Minutes_ seeking $6 billion in damages. ---
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/2 "2002-12-11T10:51:11Z")
**Mjollnir** beat you by a few hours, **MEB** [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=149441](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=149441) ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/3 "2002-12-11T10:52:29Z")
Darn it! Obviously, I shall have to sue him. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/4 "2002-12-11T12:56:51Z")
Can anybody tell me how they could have been damaged to the tune of 597 million??? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/5 "2002-12-11T13:34:12Z")
They weren’t, prolly. They’re most likely asking for punitives. Say MegaCorp. negligently injures me and causes me $100,000 in medical bills. “Bah!” says MegaCorp. “A piffle! We make that in an hour!” So they pay me off, don’t change their injurious ways and feel not a thing. Punitive damages are designed to combat this sort of thing. They’re not so much to fix me up as they are to _punish_ the sorry s.o.b.'s for their flagrantly bad conduct. $100,000 is nothing to MegaCorp., so show them we mean business and give me 5 million. Or 6. I meant 6. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/6 "2002-12-11T14:35:22Z")
Yeah, but they’re seeking $597 million in actual damages, plus an additional $5.9 billion in punitive damages. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/7 "2002-12-11T14:37:59Z")
Wow. I missed that. Apparently the 60 minutes story caused them to lose several limbs. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/8 "2002-12-11T15:33:16Z")
It’s a defamation suit, so I’m thinking the $597 million represents how much it’s costing them to have lost the respect of their friends and neighbors. Let’s say, by way of example, that one of the jurors owns a used-car dealership; now, though, no one wants to buy a used car from him, 'cause they’ve all seen _60 Minutes_ and think he was responsible for handing down unreasonably high monetary awards when he was a juror. So, his Jefferson County, Mississippi, used-car dealership has lost business to the tune of (I think there were at least two plaintiffs) $298.5 million. Hmmm… Or maybe it’s “loss of consortium”. Yeah, that’s it–ever since she saw that _60 Minutes_ the wife’s been making him sleep on the sofa. C’mon, man, you can’t put a price on that kind of thing! ---
**Author:** ![Gravity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gravity/32/14322_2.png) [@Gravity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gravity)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/9 "2002-12-11T16:19:12Z")
…I think it would cost somebody about $60 if I lost the respect of my friends and neighbors due to their actions… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2002, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/10 "2002-12-11T17:03:20Z")
That’s what happens when you like Styx, Grav. Teach you! ---
**Author:** ![Gravity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gravity/32/14322_2.png) [@Gravity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gravity)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/11 "2002-12-12T14:39:37Z")
_hangs head in shame_ ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-legal-system-jurors-and-chutzpah/141953/12 "2002-12-12T17:37:12Z")
Can we file a class-action lawsuit against the jurors, for clogging the courts with this bullshit lawsuit?