Both the justice system and the rumor mill are known to run rampant at times. That's why a person can win their court case but still lose in the court of public opinion.
Sometimes, a person is falsely accused of a crime they did not commit, or are ridiculed for suing a person or company for what the public feels is unnecessary. Those people may win their case, but the public opinion of these people who did nothing wrong is ruined.
Other times, those who are clearly guilty are acquitted of a crime. They technically won their court case, but they never stop being ridiculed or harrassed for being let go after committing a crime.
Redditors know stories like these all too well and are ready to shed some light.
It all started when Redditor ibuiltyouarosegarden asked:
"Who won in court BUT lost in the “court of public opinion?"
Not As Sweet As Aunt Jemima
"Jennifer Connell was called the worst aunt ever and the “aunt from hell” for suing her nephew. Her nephew basically jumped into her arms and the extra physical affection broke her arm. Became a really big deal when it happened. Thing is, she needed to name a person at fault for her injury for her insurance and named her nephew with his parents’ permission. She wasn’t actually suing her nephew, just getting insurance money so she could be treated."
– BlackDwarfStar
Falsely Accused
"Richard Jewell, the man falsely accused of the Centennial Olympic Park Bombings in Atlanta in 1996. He was a security guard and saved dozens of lives by spotting the bomb and clearing spectators. The FBI noted him as a person of interest, and his name was dragged through the mud by local and national media. While the FBI stopped investigating Jewell by October of that year, it wasn’t until a couple of years later that his name was truly cleared when Eric Rudolph, the actual bomber, was caught."
"Jewell sued a number of media outlets and settled with a few of them for an undisclosed amount."
– Bepus
Awful City
"The city of New London in Kelo v City of New London. The city was using the eminent domain to remove a nice lady from her home to build shopping complex. Made its way to the supreme Court and a 5 v 4 decision won and Kelo lost her home to provide economic opportunities. High profile case where the public sided with Kelo but the courts sided with the city."
– 360gamefreak
Her Name Is Everywhere
"Monica Lewinsky. She "won" in court because she wasn't the person on trial. The power dynamics also weren't in her favor. He was her boss. But yet, we still call it "the Monica Lewinsky" scandal and her name is still brought up in derogatory ways after all these years."
– littleirishpixie
Lesson Never Learned
"The woman who won a damages settlement from McDonald’s for being burned by overly hot coffee. It was dangerously hot and they’d been warned before and paid medical bills by court order over other burns, but because she got a high payout over something as seemingly trivial as coffee, she’s labeled litigious and dramatic. The burns were awful. And by the way, McDonald’s still has coffee that’s dangerously hot; they were in the news a week or two ago for another burn case."
– ExplosiveRaddish
"Stella Liebeck. She won in the infamous Stella Liebeck v. McDonald’s. She suffered third-degree burns after accidentally spilling coffee on herself, resulting in over a week in the hospital, skin grafting, and two years of medical treatment."
"She only sought payment for the medical expenses from McDonald’s, but they refused, so she sued. Even though she won, the media made her incident out to be a simple coffee burn that was entirely due to her own negligence (eg. Some claimed she spilled it while driving; however, she was actually parked when it happened). She was 79-years-old at the time of the incident."
"She proceeded to receive death threats for the rest of her life due to people thinking she was “abusing the system”. Really sad stuff."
– SauceThatsGoated
Yikes!
"John Delorean, he was set up by the FBI and his case is the reason for the term entrapment. He was acquitted of all charges."
""DeLorean needed $17 million to save his company from collapse. To this end, he spent much of 1982 desperately seeking investors for his failing company."
"He was approached by one such investor named James Hoffman on June 28, 1982, who claimed to have a business opportunity to help save DeLorean’s company."
"Unknown to DeLorean, James Hoffman was actually a convicted drug smuggler, who, in exchange for leniency, struck a deal with federal authorities to become an informant.""
– ChippyVonMaker
Trial Of The Century
"O.J. Simpson. In 1995, Simpson was acquitted of the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. However, many people believed that Simpson was guilty, and he was widely ostracized after the trial."
– Arisu_tanaka69
What Really Happened?
"Lizzie Borden."
"Legally innocent of axing her parents, but ostracized by her community as everyone knew her factually guilty."
– NerdNuncle
A Huge Upset
"George Zimmerman/"
"The jurors basically said he got away with murder."
– stealthkoopa
Extremely Disappointing
"Congressman Gary Condit who was wrongfully accused of killing his affair partner Chandra Levy. Her body was found a year after she went missing in Rock Creek Park in Washington DC. Condit was innocent but lost his bid for re-election because of the accusations."
– ninasymone44
Are there any we should add to the list? Let us know in the comment below.
