Perhaps you recall the strange story of Bob Dougherty, a Home Depot customer who sued the retailer after being glued to a toilet seat at their Louisville, CO location. Mr. Dougherty contended (before the case was dismissed) that the incident gave him post-traumatic stress disorder and that he developed diabetes as a direct result of Home Depot’s negligence. Now, nearly 4 years after Mr. Dougherty became affixed to the Home Depot toilet, a Mr. Haywood R. Rosales of St. Louis, MO has filed a similar lawsuit, claiming that Home Depot was negligent in allowing a “copycat” incident to happen to him.
From the complaint:
The Home Depot knew or should have known, that after the incident in Boulder, CO that there would be a strong possibility that instances of copycat behavior would occur, especially since the Home Depot sells a wide variety of adhesive products and that same could be used in a similar manner to recreate, or to cause a similar situation.
Mr. Rosales claims he was “rendered unable to work” by his injuries, is seeking in excess of $25,000 in damages.
Glued To His Seat [The Smoking Gun]
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Suits like this are a real pain in the ass…
I couldn’t resist either.
People like this plaintiff need to ring the overhead call button so that Tommy can come to their seat and hit them in the head with a tack hammer…
See, this is why I pee all over the toilet seats in public restrooms. I am doing the next person a favor by forcing them to check the seat and then wipe it down. I am glad to be of service.
That is the worst legal jargon I have ever read.
The lawyer should be forced to be glued to a toilet seat for that complaint.
Anyone else notice that the lawyers both have gmail email addresses? Doesn’t really inspire a lot of faith in a firm when they can’t even afford their own domain…
Must be a shitty firm…(the puns just write themselves with this one)
@bobbleheadr: Unfortunately I know all about them and believe me I’d still rather shit myself
I’ve in fact shit by a tree at a rest stop because the bathroom looked like it was gonna give me a disease.
@Skankingmike: That was you? I thought it was a damned bear driving a Volvo!
@Nev-in-NYC: You make a good point about the attorneys’ gmail e-mail addys. Then again I have to view them as at least a baby step ahead of an attorney who uses an AOL address, since it takes a little actual work to sign up at gmail/equivalent.
@donopolis: Pretty sure wiping the seat does very little… that’s what seat covers are for.
Unable to work? PTSS? How ’bout this? Spare me!
Not to victim bash or anything, but don’t most people look to see if there’s a wet-looking blobular, possibly white although sometimes transparent liquid mass on the toilet seat? I mean, sitting on water is extremely uncomfortable, especially in a public toilet. Then if you try to wipe it off with toilet paper, and the toilet paper sticks to it, obviously don’t sit.
Or, Toilet Covers; problem solved.
kohl’s has nice, clean toilets….and no source of glue that i know of……
Talk about a sticky situation. eh?eh?
This guy has to be scamming, because I know for damn sure, that if my ass got glued to a toilet seat for real, in a retail store, I’d be suing for way more than 25 grand. Maybe the guy figures they won’t bother putting up much of a fight over 25 grand. How much is HD willing to spend on attorneys fees to fight this? It’s probably more pragmatic to just pay the guy. Stupid pragmatism.
Nonetheless, it’s more fun to imagine that it is for real:
I don’t really know all that much about adhesives, but don’t they usually have a strong odor? Or most of them? Some of them? I’m only assuming, with my limited knowledge, that if an adhesive is strong enough to trap your ass that bad, it’s gotta have some sort of smell…. Somebody enlighten me please, on the properties of adhesives?
- So, anyway, my point would be that even if you didn’t for some reason notice the stuff on the seat, wouldn’t you maybe notice the chemically smell at least?
Also, if my ass was glued to a toilet seat, I would not rip my ass off of it causing “cuts, bruises, and tearing”. The guy had a cellphone, and called his wife to tell her he was stuck, shouldn’t his next move have been to get someone with tools in there to remove the seat? Pride be damned, I’d waddle my ass with the seat still stuck to it all the way to the friggin’ hospital. Worst case scenario is I still get cuts and scrapes and tearing, but I’d probably be doped up while the hospital staff did it and wouldn’t give a shit. If it’s a choice between embarassing myself by strolling thru HD with a toilet seat stuck on my bare ass and willingly ripping my own ass off, I choose the former.
@LowerHouseMember: agreed, nothing more really to say. If you must use a public toilet, check the seat, jeez!
Maybe 25K is not much to a corporation but they better think twice. If they settle they better get ready for dozens of these.
There is a lot of people willing to spend several hours glued to a toilet seat for 25K.
They were discussing this on my local morning radio show and added some more details. Basically he had to rip himself off the seat and left behind skin, hair and blood.
I do think Home Depot should bear some of the responsibility, it was an injury that occured in their facility and it can be argued that it is due to their negligent actions in not maintaining the bathroom. The guy isn’t asking for millions of dollars, $25,000 isn’t that extreme given the multi-million dollar pant lawsuit fiasco a year or so ago.
@AnderBobo: Nothing is extreme given the multi-million dollar pant lawsuit fiasco a year or so ago.
@tweemo: I am pretty sure that wiping down a toilet seat would clear away any adhesive and or urinary residue. which is my point…
Donopolis
@no.no.notorious: I got diabetes from a tractor seat…
@LowerHouseMember: @DeltaPurser: @donkeyjote: @Concerned_Citizen: yes, a tp protective barrier is necessary!
Now if that home depot has cleaning logs for the bathroom (which I believe they should be cleaning at least once a day, right?) and they can show that the incident happened just after a cleaning, this guy might have something, because obviously that should have been discovered
@AnderBobo: hmmm, as embarassing as it might be, I think I’d just yell for help and be unscrewed seat and all, then go to a doctor and get the seat unglued with some safe solvent…
the guy seems pretty reasonable since after lawyers’ fees he can’t be getting too much
@girly
I think you’re just saying that a TP barrier is necessary because most women squat and then piss all over the seat.
And we say men are undignified.
@donopolis: I don’t think it would clear away adhesive, just let you know it was there
@Motherfirefly: That doesn’t even make any sense.
@girly: so you think retail places should clean their toilet seats everyday multiple times per day?
There’s no way anybody can glue themselves to a toilet seat by accident. Glue is not that fast drying and unless you have absolutely no feeling or you’re completely blind theres no way somebody can just sit down on a seat even if they have IBS which i do not believe these causes indicate, and not notice hey there’s something here!
how do you get Diabetes from a toilet seat? this case as the the other one sound like scam artists.
@Skankingmike: usually when I visit a place that has a cleaning log I notice it is marked at least once a day
@AnderBobo: So just because it was in home depot, they’re responsible? Really? a crazy person comes in and kills someone…home depot’s fault right.
Also, how often do you suggest they clean the restroom?
If the glue was still wet when he sat down, it hadn’t been there very long. The person who put the glue on there may have waited for them to clean and then went in with the glue. What about that? Chances are they have a schedule for the cleaning and a sicko that would do this would look at that (because it would probably be a sheet in the crapper that the employees sign and put a time on) and decide when to do it.
I’m sick of companies getting blamed for everything that happens in the building. Then when they are at fault, we still wonder (sometimes).
@donkeyjote: Why do you think there’s always a mess on toilet seats? Because people hover.
@Lo-Pan: It was shoddy company property that caused damage, regardless of who caused it. If somebody had tampered with the toilet in a different way and then a little kid sat on it and the toilet somehow exploded or something, you better believe it would be Home Depot’s fault.
they do make clear glue, and spray on adhesives. no one just because it sounds stupid, doesnt mean the guy didnt look. maybe he looked, and didnt notice… or just thought ” gross, but its gonna be grosser if i dont sit now !”
i think guys are slack on the sitting issue anyway, since they dont have to sit everytime they go piss.
Not that I don’t look (I do), but why is everyone so concerned about germs on their bottom side? They come off in the shower, folks!
….Post-traumatic stress disorder from a prank? What? What a pussy.
Okay look. If Home Depot is found guilty, the Judge will also have to say this.
“I hereby declare that every restroom in America now requires a poop throne shiner position. The Poop Throne Shiner shall walk in whenever you’re done and clean up the seat before the next customer be allowed to craddle his ass on the sweet, sweet throne of freedom.”
(PS ladies…. SIT ON THE SEAT PLEASE DON’T PISS ALL OVER IT.)
so if he wins, then every retail outlet offering “free” restrooms in the USA will have to place a human monitor in each bathroom to ensure against gluing someone’s butt to a toilet seat? sheesh, what a dum-dum.
we once got sued for a new pair of expensive boots, when some unknown kids threw a soft drink over the restroom stall onto a total stranger, allegedly ruining his boots (the guy wasn’t worried about his clothes). he brought us a receipt from world famous boot-store, walmart, for his $35 boots (LOL). we and our insurance company declined to settle.
@AnderBobo: Shoddy? There was glue on it. And the glue wasn’t shoddy apparently
Frivolous and idiotic lawsuits should be a felony punishable by mandatory jail time for both the plaintiff AND any lawyers participating on their behalf.
@AnderBobo: “The guy isn’t asking for millions of dollars, $25,000 isn’t that extreme”
Then you pay the guy $25,000 and everyone will go their seperate ways. But since it it is not your money I’m guessing you dont care if stolen from the company it belongs to. You are going to be the first person in line to vote for Obama aren’t you?
@sir_pantsalot: Damn dude, you had it for a sec there. Had to bring the politics into it huh?
You’re right though, if it was this guys money he would see how it may not be HD’s fault. And while they aren’t asking for millions, paying it would open the wallet up for others to reach in.
Also just because they are asking a lower amount, doesn’t mean it’s ok.
“I only stole one car your honor, it’s not like I stole bunches of ‘em”
some asshat walking into HD and slathering some rubber cement on the seat isn’t HD’s fault unless HD themselves hired said asshat to do that.
improper plumbing, crumbling floor joists, and electrical wiring violations is hardly in the same category as an idiot with free time and living in close proximity to HD with an ample supply of adhesive.
@Lo-Pan: I just think the lower amount makes it less likely to be a shady motive. It seems the guy thinks home depot is responsible. A judge will decide that according to the law.
@sir_pantsalot: I don’t understand what is so hard to see here. A customer injured themselves due to the stores negligence. If a customer setup some sort of trap in the aisle with a bunch of nails and the OP stepped on a few and severely injured his foot HD would be just as responsible. I’m not saying that HD should check to make sure the bathroom is spotless 8 times a day. But when you offer that amenity to customers you increase your responsibility of maintaining a safe shopping environment. 99.9% of the customers experience is decent, this is that .1% where something went wrong.
If that were your butt that got ripped off and stuck to the toilet seat I’m sure you wouldn’t be so smarmy about it being the OPs fault.
@girly: You kind of took the fun out of it here by being logical.
I hope your right and the judge does right by everyone involved.
Although I hope the judge mostly does right by HD on this one.
@AnderBobo: A little while ago, you said they were a little responsible. Now you seem to think they are full on responsible.
If you don’t think they should be in there 8 times a day then why do you think they should have known about the glue? because if they didn’t know about the hazard, how do they prevent the inury? that’s where your negligence comes from.
What would you have done to prevent this incident? seriously
@AnderBobo:
Err, Wrong. The person setting up the trap would be mostly responsible. The person stepping on nails would also be responsible, because a reasonable person watches where they step and would be able to see the nails.
Also, Home depot can just go through their security tapes and be Scott free.
@Lo-Pan: Well who else is he going to sue? The toilet? He would sue Home Depot who could then track down and sue the person who was responsible for spraying glue on the seat, but I doubt they could ever even find him.
@donkeyjote: Same thing, you would sue Home Depot who would then have to do their own investigation/lawsuit to hold the person who created the danger responsible.
Trust me, I’m not an advocate for frivolous lawsuits, but there was an actual damage here for which he wants to be recompensed. At the end of the day if he wins he is only going to recieve a few thousand dollars. If Home Depot were smart they would just settle out of court quickly.
@Lo-Pan: Also ignorance is not a legal defense. The store bears the responsibility to maintain a safe shopping environment. If live wires were for some reason exposed and a little kid grabbed one and died the store couldn’t be like “sorry, we didn’t know, peace out”.
Like I said earlier this was a fluke that was caused by some prankster and unfortunately HD is doing to have to pay for that.
@Lo-Pan: If it happens on (or with) your property, you’re at risk.
Someone steals your car and runs over a little old lady, don’t be surprised if her family sues YOU because YOUR property injured her.
Someone pitches a brick through YOUR store window, flying glass injures customer, customer is going to sue YOU.
I’m not saying it’s right, I’m just saying that’s how it is.
@AnderBobo: “well who else is he going to sue?”
See the problem there? do we always have to sue someone everytime something happens?
Your exposed wires, that one works for me. That is an actual issue with maintaining the property. The case at hand is some idiot putting glue on a toilet seat.
@jswilson64: the stolen car thing. They may try to sue you, but I doubt it would hold up.
Same with the brick in the window, I don’t think you can be held responsible for the actions of others in those cases.
@jswilson64: not saying that people wouldn’t sue you. just saying that you would probably not be found at fault.
Now if you had some med pay type coverage for your company you may have to use those funds to cover it. but that would not be accepting responsibility. that kind of coverage is for freak stuff like that.