Filed under: iPod Family
iPod lawsuit ends, America bitterly disappointed
Stephanie Eick. Shannon Derrick. They may not be household names but these girls and their families represent the heart of what it means to be litigious in the age of iPod consumerism. You know the story, don't you? Last June, both girls were eighth grade middle-schoolers. Shannon lent Stephanie her iPod. Stephanie says she returned it to Shannon's purse but Shannon said Stephanie left it out on her desk. The iPod went missing and lawsuits ensued. Shannon's family sued Stephanie's family. And then Stephanie's family counter-sued. And then they were going to go on Judge Judy. And then they backed out. And then...
Well, now they've settled. Yesterday, Stephanie handed over her personal white 30G video iPod to Shannon, which she received as a present last Christmas. According to the Naperville Sun, Shannon's mother Melanie McCarthy considered the used video iPod "an insult". Apparently the back and screen were scratched and worn compared to Shannon's new Nano. The iPod will be sold on eBay (search for Derrick iPod -- the listing should go live over the next few days) and the proceeds will go to a junior CrimeStoppers program.
Both girls are reportedly hoping for new iPods for Christmas.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Jon said 3:05PM on 11-10-2006
God bless America.
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longhorn said 3:19PM on 11-10-2006
That has to be one of the dumbest things i have heard. What a waste of time and money. i hope they both get zunes for christmas.
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Jonathan Allen said 3:25PM on 11-10-2006
haha. Zunes.
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Jason said 3:28PM on 11-10-2006
Yeah, junior crime stoppers is a very important cause. What spoiled, idiotic people. These things make me proud to be human.
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Chris said 4:06PM on 11-10-2006
I hate slow news days. Note to guys in Naperville - these two are not the girls you're looking for.
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kwame said 4:08PM on 11-10-2006
Can anyone say Idiocracy?!?!?
fyi - Idiocracy is a film by Mike Judge (Office Space). I swear its an "accurate" depiction of society and where its headed.
"I see dumb people."
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Sean FInn said 4:13PM on 11-10-2006
I worked in Naperville for a year. It is where boring people go to breed. If it's any hint as to the quality of people there, it was Alan Keyes' "base" for his run for Senate against Obama. Everyone in Naperville is obese, armed, and paranoid.
If you saw the movie "Super Sized", the Naperville school district was the one that had the Best PhysEd program and also the one that had Vending machines and sugar as their lunch program. Nice message, eh?
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Jim said 4:18PM on 11-10-2006
The fact that the lawsuits and crap happened doesn't surprise me.
The fact that this story made it onto this blog does surprise me.
«sigh»
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Anonymous said 4:18PM on 11-10-2006
This is exactly what is wrong with children today... Their parents are complete morons.
Had this been me, my parents would simply have told me "Too bad. Maybe next time you'll learn to keep better track of your stuff." And you know what? It happened once or twice and I learned to keep better track of my stuff!
Parents today seem all too ready to believe their children are incapable of doing any wrong. But suing another family over a lost iPod? This elevates things to a whole new level of ridiculousness.
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Joseph Crawford said 4:25PM on 11-10-2006
This is just too funny. What about court costs and attorney fee's why not just suck it up and buy a new ipod. And i wouldnt take a 30G Video iPod for a nano to be an insult.
but the question is if both girls had an iPod why did one need to borrow the other's.
This is a joke i cannot believe they dragged this through the legal system. The only reason they got as much media attention as they did is because it is stupid and people got a good laugh over it.
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Dave said 4:28PM on 11-10-2006
"Had this been me, my parents would simply have told me 'Too bad. Maybe next time you'll learn to keep better track of your stuff.' And you know what? It happened once or twice and I learned to keep better track of my stuff!"
Basically, the exact same thing happened to me. Only my iPod got stolen. I too have learned to keep better track of my stuff!
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Dave said 4:40PM on 11-10-2006
I am so proud not to be American.
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Mgkwho said 4:50PM on 11-10-2006
What the heck happened to TUAW privacy? These girls are minors and need consent from their parents for pictures and stories and their names to be posted online. And just because one source posts it doesn't make it okay to take it, even if you're crediting the site.
And yesterday, with the full faces of apple employees? Wtf. You guys could get sued.
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Will said 4:57PM on 11-10-2006
@Dave Your comment proves that this narrow-minded thinking is indeed limited to America. Thank you for being proud, and thank you for enlightening us dull-witted Americans. Now go get your HIV on. Thx!
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Sean P. Aune said 5:01PM on 11-10-2006
Mgkwho - The rules are different when it is news and when no crime has been committed. Their names were also printed in the Chicago Sun-Times, The Beacon News, The Chicago Tribune and on television news. When names are released to one news source, they become fair game. Same for pictures.
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Shaaheen said 5:02PM on 11-10-2006
Kids news?
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okto said 5:13PM on 11-10-2006
Maybe they can get new parents for Christmas too?
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smockman said 5:22PM on 11-10-2006
TUAW, you stooped to a new low today.
This isn't news we're interested in, and posting pictures/names of minors is stupid and classless.
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Jonathan said 5:54PM on 11-10-2006
Hope all you want, you spoiled rotten little kids... If I were their parents I would get them an old-school walk-man and some blank cassette tapes.
Not that the parents are any better. And why did the kids even have iPods at school? I thought most schools didn't allow it. Serves them right.
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Eric S. mueller said 5:55PM on 11-10-2006
Those girls should get bricks for Christmas, or lumps of coal, or something. Even the Zune deserves better than that.
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