The Walking Stick

Yet another great case...Some dude (who will subsequently be referred to as not-so-blind guy) was walking down the post-office hallway when a blind man, who operated a concession stand at the post office, was walking in the opposite direction towards him. The blind man was not using his cane, instead claiming that in familiar surroundings he relied on his facial senses and didn't need the cane. The blind man bumped into the not-so-blind guy causing him to fall and injure his hip. Not-so-blind guy then sued the Post Office for negligence on the part of the blind employee. In the end, the blind man was not found to be negligent since he was acting in a manner that a reasonable person would have acted if he were blind. My professor calls this, the "Life sucks, get a helmet" type of case. Why would this guy sue the post office instead of the blind man? My professor stated that sometimes people try to avoid the "piss-off factor for the jury" by suing someone else. The jury tends to sympathize with the less fortunate, so claims often get rejected by the jury due to this sympathy. Lesson: Don't screw with the handicapped.