by Reason of Sanity Read Online Free PDF

before his show started. Boy, time sure flies.
    I look at her and tried to explain in a way I’m sure she’ll understand. “He’s an old time television personality.”
    Realizing how fast time flies, I’d better get back to the boat and finish reading that police report before the cataracts kick in.

6
L
    ong, long ago, places selling booze would dole it out in very small amounts called ‘drams,’ and if you want to really get technical, you should know that a dram is about one-eighth of an ounce. Those shops that sold booze by the dram were called ‘dram shops.’ That’s about as clever as they got naming businesses back in those days.
    Nowadays, with all the damages and deaths that drunk drivers cause, most states have enacted laws that trace liability for drunk driving injuries back to the last place where the drunk driver was served. Those laws are called ‘Dramshop laws,’ and they now exist in all but seven states, but California isn’t one of them.
    This means that if I can construct my case properly by using California’s current Dramshop law, I might be able to bring an action on Vinnie’s behalf against the bar where his defendant got drunk.
    But even if I can put that together by showing he got drunk there and not somewhere else before going to that last watering hole, the restaurant will probably argue that his criminal act of stealing the Lexus was an ‘unforeseeable’ event, and therefore it cuts off their liability for his further actions. This is going to take some heavy-duty research. Jack Bibberman may have to spend time on some barstools for this case, but considering how well he holds his liquor, it will be a fun assignment for him.
    Fortunately, S uzi was successful in getting us a copy of the police report on the auto theft portion of the case. It gives a lot of facts about the vehicle, the lack of any owner’s permission to use it, yada yada. All that’s missing is how long the defendant was in that place drinking. I’d like to avoid any surprise that could jump up and bite me if the guy did all his drinking somewhere else and just stopped in this place to say hello to someone. The defendant obviously didn’t have his own car, so I tell Jack to check other saloons within walking distance. He’s got the defendant’s mug shot to show around.
    I feel better now th at there’s a slim possibility to hang my hat on for Vinnie’s case. Maybe now would be a good time to goof off for an hour or so and read a Sherlock Holmes story. Usually, getting comfortable to do some reading causes some interruption. This time it’s different. Just the thought of doing some reading causes the phone to ring. It’s Stuart.
    “Hey Stu, what’s up. Oh, by the way, I think I’ve got a way to go on your friend Vinnie’s case, but we’re going to have to do some investigating on it.”
    “That’s great Pete, but I’m afraid I’ve got another case that’s a little more important to me, right now.”
    “Stu, I’m really not l ooking for any new cases this month. I’ve got an arraignment on that murder case next week against Myra, Vinnie’s case will be taking up a lot of my time, and I’m still trying to defend that case where the slip and fall guy got killed in the hospital.”
“Pete, you don’t understand. It’s me this time.
    I’m getting sued again.”
“For what?”
“You know that small claim court thing I’m
    doing f or people who get junk faxes? Well one of the defendants we filed against had the case moved up into the Municipal Court and they’re counter-suing me for some things like Barratry, Champerty and Maintenance.”
    I don’t want to admit that I haven’t the slightest idea what he’s talking about. “Stuart, bring whatever they served you with over to the boat this evening. I can’t give you any advice until I see the papers. We’ll have some dinner and talk about it.”
    “Are we eating out?” I sense some apprehension on his part.
“No, Stuart. I’m