Rebuttal
Rebuttal
Rebmasel
76: The Bloody Telephone Booth (Legal Urban Legends pt. 2)
32 minutes Posted May 28, 2026 at 8:00 am.
Intro
Case Begins
THE INCIDENT (1974)
Bigbee's Bills
REAGAN'S SPEECH (AND VENDETTA) (1986)
THE LAWSUIT & CLAIMS
CA Supreme Court & Chief Justice Rose Bird (1983)
SETTLEMENT & AFTERMATH
WHAT HAPPENED TO CHARLES BIGBEE?
Reb's Rebuttal
0:00
32:51
Download MP3
Show notes
(WATCH THIS EPISODE ON YOUTUBE) In 1986, President Ronald Reagan gave a speech describing this plaintiff as "outrageous," "absurd," and "loony". His name was Charles Bigbee, and his leg had been torn from his body.
This is Bigbee v. Pacific Telephone & Telegraph, Co., et al. (1983)—the story of a drunk woman, a telephone booth, and the most famous "frivolous" lawsuit of the 1980s.
Enjoy.
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