Denny's restaurants sued over salt in meals

As reported on July 23rd, 2009 by Jerry Hirsch on the latimes.com
Doctors recommend against eating more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day. Order Denny’s double cheeseburger and you’ll consume 3,880 milligrams of sodium in one sitting, almost double the daily suggested allowance of salt.
Denny’s meals “are dangerously high in sodium,” according to lawsuit filed today by a New Jersey man with the support of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit group active in nutrition and food-safety issues.
The New Jersey Superior Court lawsuit alleges that Denny’s heavy use of salt puts “the restaurant chain’s customers at greater risk of high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke.” The lawsuit asks the court to order Denny’s to list the sodium content of its food on the menu and warn about the hazards of consuming salt in high doses.
The lawsuit was filed in Middlesex County on behalf of Nick DeBenedetto, a 48-year-old resident of Tinton Falls, N.J., who said he takes medicine to control his blood pressure. DeBenedetto is seeking class action status for the suit.
DeBenedetto said he “was astonished” to learn of the sodium content of Denny’s food. “I never would have selected those items had I known.”

Editor Rozek’s Notes:…Ok…so let me get this straight…DeBenedetto wouldn’t have ordered a double cheeseburger if he had known how much salt it contained because he is taking medicine to control his blood pressure? Um…how many years has he been eating at Denny’s? Isn’t their slogan something like, “Denny’s! Clogging the nation’s arteries with plaque and beef, one person without any sense of health consciousness at a time??” This shouldn’t be a lawsuit. When your blood pressure soars and your heart starts to explode from your chest, you think, “hmm…what could I do differently?…Oh…I know! I should stop eating at Denny’s!” I think the president should weigh in on this too. I am certain that he would use his teleprompter to make a big announcement saying, “The American people who eat at Denny’s are acting stupidly!”…and then he can invite them all over to his house for a beer and a cigarette to explain that that’s not what he meant… “err…no, it’s what I meant, just not what I should have said…um…what I meant to say was that you’re all idiots…wait…no…Crap!…why do I keep getting myself in trouble like this? I couldn’t just have kept my opinion to myself? Here! Just have a hamburger out on the white house lawn.” ...By the time his 4 years is up, the white house lawn is going to be a public park for people he’s apologizing to!

Man Catches Fire After Being Tasered

As reported on July 21, 2009 on aol.com By KRISTEN GELINEAU, AP

SYDNEY (July 21) -- A man whose relatives say had been sniffing gasoline burst into flames after a police officer Tasered him as he ran at officials carrying a container of fuel, police said Tuesday.
The man, identified by his family as 36-year-old Ronald Mitchell, was in critical condition at a Perth hospital in Western Australia state following Monday's incident in Warburton, an Aboriginal community 950 miles (1,540 kilometers) northeast of Perth.
Western Australia police said they were responding to a complaint at a house when Mitchell ran outside carrying a cigarette lighter and a large plastic bottle containing what they believe was fuel. When he refused to stop running toward them, one officer Tasered him, police said in a statement.
The man was immediately engulfed in flames. The officer threw him to the ground and smothered the blaze with his hands, the statement said. Mitchell was charged with assault to prevent arrest and possession of a sniffing substance.

An 18-year-old woman threw rocks at the officer as he tried to help, and he was later treated for a cut on his head and burns to his hands, police said.
The officer who Tasered Mitchell was not suspended, Clifford said.


Editor Rozek’s Notes: This really says it all. We need to be careful about what we eat and smell. Who knows when a policeman is going to walk up and taser us? How can you ever be sure it’s not the day that it will happen? For instance, if I was tasered at this very minute, I might burst into a giant pan of lasagna. It’s just dangerous. I have to wonder if he didn’t know that it was flammable judging from the fact that he was carrying a lighter too?? I always read the warning labels. I took the tag off of my mattress just the other day and put it on my refrigerator to remind me that I shouldn’t have removed it “under penalty of law.”…um…oops…sorry! I’m just saying that no where on a lighter does it say, “Caution! If carrying with previously sniffed gasoline and then tasered, contents may cause individual to burst into flames.” That’s how they getcha!

Mischa Placed Under Psychiatric Hold

As reported on July 17, 2009 on popeater.com

On Wednesday, Mischa Barton was transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and allegedly placed under an involuntary psychiatric hold after she was removed from her home by police, Access Hollywood reports. This same code was used to hold Britney Spears twice in Los Angeles in January 2008.
Barton was "removed from her home" by police after having a "freak out," a LAPD spokesperson told Us Weekly. Officer April Harding said she and fellow officers responded to "a medical issue" after Barton called them herself.

Barton will skip the New York City premiere of her movie 'Homecoming' on Thursday night, a rep for the actress confirmed. Producer Austin Stark tells PEOPLE, "I wish her all the best. First and foremost, we want her to get healthy again. It's obvious we'd like her to support the movie and be here, but we hope she gets better."
Stark adds, "When she was on-set, she acted like a professional. I honestly had no complaints. She struck me as a nice young girl, she never said anything mean to anyone, and she wasn't late on-set or anything like that." In 2008, the 'O.C.' actress checked into rehab after she was charged with DUI and marijuana possession. She was sentenced to 36 months probation, told to attend alcohol education classes and pay a fine.
A friend of the actress told PEOPLE, "She has been dealing with a lot of personal issues. I don't know if she really ever gave up some of the bad habits that had gotten out of control a couple years back."

Editor Rozek’s Notes: That’s strange! Actresses never have “freak-outs!” It was nice that she “acted like a professional, nice young girl who never said anything mean to anyone!” She must be a great person! I’m sure this is all a big misunderstanding. That DUI and marijuana possession charge…and rehab…were all a set up. I mean…she “wasn’t late on-set or anything!” Everyone knows that women who have “freak-outs” are always late everywhere!

Man Wrongly Jailed Over Child Support

As reported on July 16, 2009 on aol.com AP

ADEL, Ga. (July 16) -- A Georgia man spent more than a year behind bars for failing to pay child support for a child that wasn't his, but he was released after DNA tests showed he wasn't the father.
Frank Hatley, 50, had been jailed since June 2008 for not making payments, but two separate DNA tests in the last nine years showed he was not the father of the boy, who is now 21.
"State child support officials have shown extraordinarily poor judgment in Mr. Hatley's case," Geraghty said.
Hatley had a relationship with Essie Lee Morrison, who had a baby in 1987 and told Hatley the child was his, according to court records. The couple never married and split up shortly afterward.
In 1989, Morrison applied for public assistance through the state Department of Human Resources. Hatley agreed to reimburse the state because he believed the boy was his.
Documents show Hatley paid at least $9,500.
But in 2000, DNA samples showed the two were not related, according to court records. A test earlier this month confirmed that.

Editor Rozek’s Notes: That’s sort of a catch-22! If I worked for social services, I would want to award custody to the man who actually attempted to be a father to the child instead of the woman who couldn’t figure out who the father actually was! I think that she should have to repay him all of the money he paid for the child over the years. What was the judge thinking the first time when he read the DNA tests that showed this man wasn’t the father to begin with? Possibly Sonia Sotomayor could help that judge now by instituting her “block, block, no trade-backs” reasoning (that's consistently "traded back" by higher courts!)! Hopefully the judge has a background of having a dead-beat dad to fall back on! We can only dream!

Man Arrested in Wife's High-Seas Death

As reported on July 17th, 2009 By Gillina Flaccus,AP on aol.com

SAN DIEGO (July 16) - A Los Angeles man was arrested Thursday for allegedly murdering his wife three days into a five-day cruise to Mexico, turning the luxury oceanliner into a crime scene as it sailed through the waters of the Pacific Ocean.
Robert McGill was taken into custody from the Carnival Elation cruise ship more than six hours after it returned to San Diego on Thursday. He will be charged with the murder of his wife, Shirley, who was found dead in the couple's cabin on Tuesday evening, said Keith Slotter, special agent in charge of the FBI's San Diego bureau.

Slotter said a passenger contacted ship's security Tuesday and expressed concern that Shirley McGill might be dead. Crew members went to the cabin and found her body, but Robert McGill was not in the room. Slotter wouldn't say why the passenger who notified security was concerned, but said several hours may have passed before the body's discovery. Both the suspect and victim were in their mid-50s, Slotter said.
The ship is the length of more than two football fields and carries more than 2,000 passengers and 900 crew members, according to Carnival's Web site. With 14 decks, passengers can spend their days at numerous restaurants, bars, clubs, a spa, a casino, a mini-golf course and three pools. The ship left Saturday, stopping in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Editor Rozek’s Notes: These 14 deck cruise ships with “numerous restaurants, bars, clubs, mini-golf courses and three pools” could leave anyone feeling a little bit cooped up! I’m sure this is going to be a justifiable homicide. Here was this poor, unassuming man on a cruise with his wife as she started worrying about her hair and her mascara or what she was going to wear to the massive buffet that evening and he just snapped. These cruises are death traps! It does seem like it could’ve been planned a little more carefully though. With the entire ocean at his disposal, don’t you think he could’ve found a better place to hide the body than in his own room? Note to self: if I ever get married, don’t go on cruise with husband! It’s just asking for trouble!

US Skier Injured in Escalator Fall

As reported on July 16, 2009 on aol.com

PARK CITY, Utah (July 16) - U.S. alpine skier Cody Marshall has a head injury after falling between 20 to 30 feet from an escalator.

U.S. Ski Team spokesman Tom Kelly says the 26-year-old Marshall was out with teammates when he fell off the escalator rail about 12 a.m. Thursday in a mini-mall in downtown Park City, Utah. He was taken by ambulance to University Hospital in Salt Lake City, where he was listed in critical condition Thursday afternoon.
Marshall, from Pittsfield, Vt., finished third in the slalom at the U.S. Alpine Championships this spring. His sister, Chelsea, is also a member of the U.S. alpine team and older brother, Jesse, is a former member.

Editor Rozek’s Notes: I can see how this could happen. Haven’t you ever been on an escalator and thought “whoooaaa! This thing is really dangerous!” This guy wasn’t used to doing dangerous, dare-devil stunts like riding an escalator. Those moving walkways in airports scare me a little too. They should have warnings on them! I feel a lawsuit coming on!

'Harry Potter' Star Could Face 14 Years for Growing Marijuana Farm

As reported on July 9, 2009 on foxnews.com

“Harry Potter” star Jamie Waylett has been charged with growing ten cannabis plants.
The 19-year-old actor will have to appear in court later this month for the charges stemming from an April arrest.
Waylett, who plays Potter bully Vincent Crabbe, was busted when cops pulled over his vehicle in London and allegedly found eight bags of marijuana. He was taken to a nearby police station before a team of officers raided his mother’s home in Camden, the Daily Telegraph reports. A Metropolitan police spokeswoman said the actor would appear in court late this month and “is charged with producing a Class B drug, nearly ten plants of cannabis.”
The plants – valued at more than $3,000 – were allegedly found among DJ equipment and a Playstation, the Telegraph said.
Waylett may face up to 14 years for cannabis production, while the maximum charge for cannabis possession is five years.

Editor Rozek’s Notes: If only someone would’ve seen this coming! A child star with thrill seeking behavioral tendencies? Weird! Maybe we should go back to paying kids in buttons on a chart according to how many times they make their bed and wash the dishes?…I’m just saying…early success seems to put a kid right in the line of fire- literally! If you are growing weed next to your playstation, you are either too young, or 40 years old and “know this guy who knows this guy who’s gonna help you get signed to a record label”…step away from the chips and go to college people!