Story Archive

What Do You Mean by “Ridiculous Lawsuits by Inmates”?

When Jesse Dimmick was a fugitive from Colorado fleeing a murder charge, he led police in Kansas on a chase, and his car was disabled in front of a newlywed couple’s house. He ran in and confronted the couple, Jared and Lindsay Rowley, at knifepoint. As police surrounded the house, Dimmick says he got a verbal agreement from the couple that they would help him escape in exchange for an unspecified cash payment, which he says constituted “a legally binding oral contract.” But when he fell asleep, the Rowleys fled the house and police stormed in, shooting and wounding Dimmick. He was convicted of multiple felonies in the case, but after his sentencing (10 years, 11 months), Dimmick was extradited to Colorado to face the murder charge. In his free time while awaiting trial in that case, Dimmick has sued the Rowleys “without the aid of proffessional [sic] legal counsel,” his claim notes, alleging “breech [sic] of contract” and demanding $235,000 in compensation. The Rowleys’ attorney asked for a dismissal of the suit, but the judge has yet to rule on that motion. (RC/Topeka Capital-Journal) ...The law has this backwards. Inmates shouldn’t be allowed to file such suits without the judge’s permission.