Is Michael Richards' alleged heckler entitled to financial compensation?

[wtmusic]

"But Mr. Richards is not seeking rehabilitation through comedy. On Friday he issued a statement through a spokesman, Howard Rubenstein, saying that he would apologize in person to the man he had attacked from the stage, Kyle Doss, at a meeting in the presence of a retired judge. Mr. Rubenstein said it was likely the two sides would discuss financial compensation.

At a news conference later that day in Los Angeles, Mr. Doss, a 26-year-old student, and two other African-Americans who were with him at the Laugh Factory, appeared at the office of their lawyer, Gloria Allred. Ms. Allred said that characterizing her clients as hecklers, as most news accounts have done, is wrong because they were part of a large group celebrating a surprise birthday party, and what first drew Mr. Richards’s ire was the noise of them ordering drinks."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/03/fashion/03comedy.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=style

[NVMojo]

1. if the point is being made for the common good ...NO

[LisaL]

2. I don't think they deserve any compensation. But Richards will

probably end up paying them anyway.

[buff2]

8. I agree

It's all about the money anyway. The guy has appologized over and over and if these guys are demanding money over this incident,then that is what the big stink was all about in the very beginning.I think it's a shame that these guys started the mess in the first place but yet THEY are the victims.No one has ever mentioned the name calling these guys did to Michael and the disturbance they did to his show.....it's all about them and their feelings. I think the whole fiasco was brought about to bring Michael down and then extort money from him. Do these guys have a JOB? Makes you wonder,huh?

[wtmusic]

15. It's not "all about them and their feelings", or "the money"

It's about Richards insulting all African-Americans. The only issue of importance here.

[LisaL]

16. So, if Richards were to pay them, they are going to distribute the

money among all African-Americans?

[wtmusic]

17. I have no idea what they're going to do

and I don't think a payment is justified.

[Counciltucky]

3. Absolutely not.

I wish I was entitled to financial compensation every time someone harassed me -- I'd be approaching billionaire status.

Kramer apologized, he seemed genuinely contrite, and it should fall out of the public eye.

Besides, I honestly don't think Kramer's racist. It seems that he honestly did it out of nothing more than a combination of anger and shock value. It was a poor choice, but the motive wasn't racist per se.

[LisaL]

4. I think he got problems.

He just looked unbalanced during his rant.

[buff2]

11. Oh and the hecklers didn't?

:eyes:

[LisaL]

14. I don't know about hecklers, but Richards got issues.

I hope he gets help.

[buff2]

20. I think he just got sick of the harrassment

and exploded. It's hard to do stand-up comic when you got loud disrupters.I think those guys who did the harrassing are getting too much of a free pass,IMHO.It's not ALL Michael's fault. They need to take responsibility for THEIR actions,too.

[wtmusic]

5. "50 years ago we'd have you upside down with a fork up your ass"

is racist. Kramer is a racist. That comment goes beyond spite, and reveals a racist worldview.

[bullimiami]

6. i say no. but he certainly should have the right to take it to a civil court if he thinks

he has been damaged and deserves compensation.

[beaconess]

36. If his lawyer thought there was any chance in hell that he could recover damages

in civil court, she'd have filed a lawsuit. She didn't because there is absolutely no legal action based on being offended by being yelled at in a comedy club and she certainly knows it - if she had filed suit, she'd not only get tossed out of court before the ink was dry on the complaint, but she'd also probably be slapped with sanctions for filing a frivolous lawsuit.

[salin]

7. Didn't we do this same poll, last weekend?

I only get time on DU on the weekends - so it seems like I just read this very exact same poll. Can't imagine different responses this weekend.

[Agnomen]

9. He's entitled to money back for his ticket

But that's all.

[wtmusic]

10. That seems entirely fair. nt

[msongs]

12. if you can dish it out but can't take it in return, don't be a rude heckler nt

[GreenPartyVoter]

18. I lean toward that too.

[wtmusic]

19. Are all forms of verbal assault equivalent?

What forms of verbal assault entitle one to monetary compensation (if any)? :shrug:

[LisaL]

24. The only thing we need in this lawsuit happy country is to sue

each other for being verbally assaulted. Where does it stop? Can I sue you if I think you looked at me funny?

[wtmusic]

27. IMO for most people it's reached an uneasy equilibrium

Though cases like this are ridiculous, lawsuits play an essential role in law enforcement. The reason the food you eat and the car you drive are safe has a lot more to do with the threat of being sued than it does with the threat of fines levied by government regulatory agencies. That threat is, for the most part, a good thing. Keeps everyone on their toes.

You most certainly can sue me if you though I looked at you funny, and you'd be wasting your money--I'd have the case promptly thrown out of court. If you were just that type of person and you happened to live in my state (CA), I'd be sure you were labeled a vexatious litigant so you wouldn't be a pain in the ass to other people.

[Warren Stupidity]

13. I vote for option 3: who gives a flying fuck?

Is there nothing more pressing for us to deal with than the sad case of the self destruction of Richards?

[LTR]

21. I think they're entitled to a thicker skin

Hell, they started it with the heckling. Should Richards sue THEM?

I got a bad feeling about all of this when they hired that ambulance chaser Allred as their lawyer. This is just a money grab, and they ain't entitled to shit. Tell 'em to grow some nuts and suck it up. If I got compensation for every time I've been offended, I'd be pretty damn wealthy by now.

[buff2]

22. That Allred is a real piece of work

It's all about the $$$$$$$$$$$$ and hiring that big mouthed money grubber proves it.

[LisaL]

23. You just go to make sure you get offended by rich people. LOL.

[BluegrassDem]

26. Well Richards did say he was a "rich man"

He told the guys that when he wakes up in the morning, he'll be rich and they'll still be a n*****.

So there you go...he brought money into it. Pay up! That'll teach anyone the next time to use the n-word to embarrass and degrade someone in public. If you do it, you better not be rich and famous.

If he was calling me those words, I would've kicked his ass all over that stage.

It's really amazing the double standard. When Mel Gibson went on his tirade, no one ever said the Jews need to get over it. No one said that Mel has apologized enough. The Jews were allowed to be mad about it. But with Richards, which was worse in every fashion, black people all of a sudden should get over it and are not entitled to be upset! Or black people should have thicker skin? What kinda fucking shit is that? People are prejudiced and don't even realize it.

[LisaL]

31. We are talking about money here. Since you brought

Gibson up, did any Jews think he should pay them?
Cause I don't recall anything like that.
:eyes:

[Spinzonner]

25. Definitely, about $.02

[EST]

28. I am a racist--at least I think I am.

I was raised in an area where racism was expected and not even thought about very much.
Ever since junior high school in 1960, I have had at least one close friend who was of a skin color different from mine and it never occurred to me that might be considered odd.

Knowing that there is buried, somewhere deep in my memory banks, a racist streak, I have battled and schooled myself for over fifty years to keep any such crap dead and buried.

I would rather cut my hand off than hurt someone by showing off my intolerance. Yet, over the years, there have been times, when I was really angry or there was something that made me feel mean and small, that I have felt some of the racist shit boiling up inside.

I have never acted on those feelings and have managed to stomp on them and be the better person that I know I can be, but I can understand how someone who is less well self schooled or more emotional-plus probably drunk-might mouth off and show their ignorance and stupidity.

I have been insulted and challenged by aggressive people whose fur was a little different from mine, but the only time I've ever thought about money in those circumstances was when I thought they needed to buy some two hundred dollar an hour psychiatrist's time and work on anger management.

[wtmusic]

30. You are one honest and self-aware individual nt

[EST]

32. Very kind of you to say.

I'll try not to let you down.

[JeremyWestenn]

29. Absolutely not.

First off, if he was heckling, he got what was coming to him. Like if you dive into the ocean it's liable that there is an off chance a shark might actually attack you. If he heckled, he rolled dice, he lost.

What's more is that I believe this person may not have been the ones to heckle him. There's been some disparity as to who did what but It still doesn't deter my main point. These are people who have seen a chance to grab some cash and are scamping like the cockroaches they are for a chance to make some money.

No, no, and no again. Plus there's no legal way to force him to pay so he'd have to voluntarily give it up.

[BluegrassDem]

33. THERE WAS NO HECKLING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why do people keep repeating that shit? Paul Rodgriguez, Sinbad, and other witnesses say there was no heckling at all. They said the guys were being noisy amongst themselves, but they were NOT heckling Richards. Richards is the one who went off on them.

For people like DU'ers to protest the lies of the corporate media so much, so many people still believe what was originally reported, than turned out to be untrue.

[EST]

37. Your post is the first time I have heard that-

do you have a link?
I seem to recall, on at least one of the interviews, the "victims" were asked why they were heckling and they responded that it was a lousy show and he wasn't funny. Mebbe I made that up, unintentionally, or it was reported thus, third party, but a link debunking this would be muchly appreciated.

[npincus]

34. Mel Gibson hurt my feelings- now where's my cash?

[beaconess]

35. Once Gloria Allred got involved, I knew this was turning into a circus

She is one of the most obnoxious publicity hounds around.

They aren't entitled to squat. There is no legal protection against being yelled at or called names in a comedy club.

Allred knows there is no legal liability - that's why she didn't sue in court but instead is going through this bullshit mediation exercise.

It's a shame - these guys really were treated badly by Richards and he deserves to have his career flushed down the toilet. But I think they're now being exploited by a money-grubbing oppportunist who uses her law degree for the worst purposes.