Common Sense In A Courtroom?

What's The World Coming To?

June 10, 2006 -- "...Three cheers for Nassau Supreme Court Justice John Galasso, who provided a much-needed example of something that, sadly, is often missing from the bench these days.

Plain old common sense.

Galasso dismissed a two-year-old lawsuit filed by a woman against a popular Rockville Centre restaurant where she'd eaten a generous helping of mussels marinara.

Problem is, a small piece of shell lodged in her throat, lacerating it.

The woman, Mary Slaymaker, spent 12 days in the hospital when the wound became infected.

Then, having suffered through "quite an ordeal," according to her lawyer, she expected the restaurant to pay up - to the tune of $750,000.
No way, said Galasso.

When you eat shellfish, he declared, there is a "reasonable expectation" that the meal is going to contain some shells. She didn't prove there was anything wrong with the food, and it didn't contain any unexpected foreign objects.

In other words, said the judge, it was basically her own fault for being careless.

Declaring that "shellfish have shells and people who eat shellfish should know that" may sound simple. But arguing the opposite - and demanding that someone else be forced to pay for a diner's carelessness - is what fuels the engine of the tort-law industry.

Sad to say, far too often the restaurant would have found itself on the wrong end of a jury verdict or forced to settle the case because of the pervasive cult of victimology.

Not this time, though, thanks to Justice Galasso.

As for Mary Slaymaker, we're sorry for her trouble. Next time, maybe she'll stick to pasta."

Wow. He could of at least required that all shellfish carry little stickers to warn folks that if broken they may become sharpened. How else are liberals supposed to not hurt themselves?