Inmate Files Federal Complaint Against NASCAR Star Jeff Gordon
http://www.wsoctv.com/iwitness/14108729/detail.html
The complaint, filed Sept. 12 in the United States District Court Western District Of North Carolina, asserts that Jeff Gordon is, "Recklessly Drivin' My Life Crazy." The accuser is 30-year-old, Jonathan Lee Riches, a federal inmate serving time for fraud in South Carolina. The handwritten, 3-page complaint goes on to accuse Gordon of a litany of other crimes--from poisoning fans with chemical weapons, to wrecking other drivers by dropping Tic Tacs and oil on the track through a secret trap door under his race car. This is not the first time Riches has filed a complaint against a famous person.In fact, Riches has filed dozens of complaints against hundreds of companies, organizations and individuals--living and dead. Online free encyclopedia site, Wikipedia, is filled with entries about Riches and his lawsuits. Elvis Presley, George Bush, the CIA, Larry King, Mike Vick, Neverland Ranch, Wal-Mart, Don Imus and even an interstate bridge have all been targets of the man who identifies himself as the "Litigator Crusader." Most of the complaints read like crazy, conspiracy theory riddles. In one complaint, he claims that Barry Bonds cracked the Liberty Bell with Hank Aaron's Bat.According to the Federal Bureau of Prison's Web site, Riches' projected release date is March of 2012. A watchdog group said the crimes that landed him in jail in the first place were mainly related to identity theft and fraud. While in jail, he has issued a seemingly continuous stream of rambling complaints to U.S. District Courts around the nation.His latest names Jeff Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports as co-defendants. In it he issues no fewer that 13 individual complaints against them. In one section Riches states, "Gordon tied me to his bumper during the Talladega race." Elsewhere he complains, "Karl Rove left the White House to work as Gordon's tire changer." He also warns that, "Gordon told me [he has] secret plans to put wings on the #24 car and fly it into Ft. Knox."Obviously, none of these complaints are something the federal government plans to investigate--yet all the complaints issued by Riches still have to be processed, filed and dismissed. A journey which is fueled by taxpayer money. So how is a convicted federal inmate able to keep filing all of these frivolous complaints and wasting time, money and manpower in an already swamped legal system? Simply put, anyone is allowed to do it. For a more specific answer we interviewed a prominent Charlotte attorney. His video explanation is located on the sidebar of this page. Also there, we've put together several slides which contain actual excerpts from the Jeff Gordon complaint.Reading any of Riches' federal complaints really does beg the question, "Is this guy crazy or does he enjoy wasting time and taxpayer money while he's sitting in jail?" There is one line though that is telling of a man's mental condition, "Plaintiff seeks 22,000,000,000.00 Billion dollars..." That's just greedy, not crazy.So what does Jeff Gordon think about this? Chances are he hasn't heard a word about it. The courts will most likely dismiss the case immediately and he won't even get a note from them saying what happened. I did contact a spokesman for Hedrick Motorsports today. He told me in an e-mail, "We appreciate the opportunity to respond. Because we were not aware of the issue and do not know the details, we respectfully decline comment."Sources: Federal Bureau Of Prisons, United States District Court Western District Of North Carolina, Wikipedia.com, Getty Images, Hendrick Motorsports, James Wyatt III, Attorney at Law
http://www.wsoctv.com/iwitness/14108729/detail.html
The complaint, filed Sept. 12 in the United States District Court Western District Of North Carolina, asserts that Jeff Gordon is, "Recklessly Drivin' My Life Crazy." The accuser is 30-year-old, Jonathan Lee Riches, a federal inmate serving time for fraud in South Carolina. The handwritten, 3-page complaint goes on to accuse Gordon of a litany of other crimes--from poisoning fans with chemical weapons, to wrecking other drivers by dropping Tic Tacs and oil on the track through a secret trap door under his race car. This is not the first time Riches has filed a complaint against a famous person.In fact, Riches has filed dozens of complaints against hundreds of companies, organizations and individuals--living and dead. Online free encyclopedia site, Wikipedia, is filled with entries about Riches and his lawsuits. Elvis Presley, George Bush, the CIA, Larry King, Mike Vick, Neverland Ranch, Wal-Mart, Don Imus and even an interstate bridge have all been targets of the man who identifies himself as the "Litigator Crusader." Most of the complaints read like crazy, conspiracy theory riddles. In one complaint, he claims that Barry Bonds cracked the Liberty Bell with Hank Aaron's Bat.According to the Federal Bureau of Prison's Web site, Riches' projected release date is March of 2012. A watchdog group said the crimes that landed him in jail in the first place were mainly related to identity theft and fraud. While in jail, he has issued a seemingly continuous stream of rambling complaints to U.S. District Courts around the nation.His latest names Jeff Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports as co-defendants. In it he issues no fewer that 13 individual complaints against them. In one section Riches states, "Gordon tied me to his bumper during the Talladega race." Elsewhere he complains, "Karl Rove left the White House to work as Gordon's tire changer." He also warns that, "Gordon told me [he has] secret plans to put wings on the #24 car and fly it into Ft. Knox."Obviously, none of these complaints are something the federal government plans to investigate--yet all the complaints issued by Riches still have to be processed, filed and dismissed. A journey which is fueled by taxpayer money. So how is a convicted federal inmate able to keep filing all of these frivolous complaints and wasting time, money and manpower in an already swamped legal system? Simply put, anyone is allowed to do it. For a more specific answer we interviewed a prominent Charlotte attorney. His video explanation is located on the sidebar of this page. Also there, we've put together several slides which contain actual excerpts from the Jeff Gordon complaint.Reading any of Riches' federal complaints really does beg the question, "Is this guy crazy or does he enjoy wasting time and taxpayer money while he's sitting in jail?" There is one line though that is telling of a man's mental condition, "Plaintiff seeks 22,000,000,000.00 Billion dollars..." That's just greedy, not crazy.So what does Jeff Gordon think about this? Chances are he hasn't heard a word about it. The courts will most likely dismiss the case immediately and he won't even get a note from them saying what happened. I did contact a spokesman for Hedrick Motorsports today. He told me in an e-mail, "We appreciate the opportunity to respond. Because we were not aware of the issue and do not know the details, we respectfully decline comment."Sources: Federal Bureau Of Prisons, United States District Court Western District Of North Carolina, Wikipedia.com, Getty Images, Hendrick Motorsports, James Wyatt III, Attorney at Law
