I am NOT a very important lawyer…

…but I think I can spot a baseless lawsuit when I see one.

Josh Hancock was a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. He died in a car crash on April 29th of this year.

Josh Hancock crashed his rented Ford Explorer into the back of a flatbed pickup that was on the side of the road helping out another vehicle. He was not wearing a seatbelt. He was doing 68 in a 55. He was talking on his cellphone and he had weed in the car with him.

Oh yeah…and he was drunk. Like…almost twice the legal limit drunk.

So, drunk guy (who may be high, too) is talking on the phone while speeding without his seatbelt on, crashes into A PARKED TRUCK and dies.

Now, as “administrator of his son’s estate,” Josh’s father Dean Hancock has decided to sue the restaurant that Hancock was at prior to his final ride, claiming the over-served him. The venue is owned by Cardinals broadcaster Mike Shannon and run by his daughter, who claims that they offered to get a cab for Mr. Hancock, who refused.

It doesn’t end there, though. In addition to suing the restaurant, the elder Hancock has also included in the lawsuit the towing company whose truck was hit, the driver of said tow truck, and (get this) the driver of the car who was stalled on the side of the road that necessitated said tow truck.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I think that a case can be made against the restaurant for over-serving. Hancock reportedly had a history of drinking and if the owners of the establishment knew that and still let him get behind the wheel, then I think there is at least grounds for a lawsuit, despite the fact that I still believe Hancock was in the wrong.

One even might be able to stretch out the negligence factor to the tow truck driver. Perhaps he did not have the proper lights or hazard signals that he is required to have on…I do not know how the law is worded regarding that, but maybe he did not give proper warning to his location on the dark highway, even though I still believe that if you crash into something parked, it is your own damn fault for not recognizing and avoiding it. IPDE. Identify, Predict, Decide, Execute. I learned that freshman year in driver’s ed.

But this poor bastard who was on the side of the road had skidded out to avoid an accident earlier. His car was either stalled or damaged to the point that he required the assistance of a tow truck, and is in no way related to or responsible for the fact that Hancock is dead. Now he is going to have to hire a lawyer and spend a lot of money defending his right to be stalled on the side of the road. It is just unfair, and I hope to God whomever has the power throws out the pending lawsuit against those who are clearly not in the wrong. The willingness for American people to try and sue everyone without discretion is a sad, sad thing.

Curious that the person Hancock was speaking with on the phone at the time of his accident is not named in the lawsuit, eh?

God Bless America.

Land of the cash grab.