Judge sues his own courthouse........

..... folks, you just can't make this stuff up! A Massachusetts judge fell on the steps to his courthouse three years ago -- never missed a day of work --- and now that he is getting ready to retire -- is suing for possible future medical needs and for pain and injury.....

From the Boston Globe; Few at the Norfolk Superior Court house in Dedham disputed that the worn and uneven front steps needed fixing. But when a judge in his late 60s tripped on them and broke his left kneecap more than three years ago, neither the state nor the county wanted to take responsibility for the condition of the steps.

Now the judge, Paul A. Chernoff, is suing both the state and the county to determine who is at fault.

Chernoff, who is about to retire, wants to know which party will cover his future medical bills if he develops arthritis in the damaged knee or requires a knee replacement.

"It's never going to be completely healed," said Chernoff's attorney, Leonard Kesten, explaining that judges in Massachusetts don't qualify for workers' compensation, which would have guaranteed coverage of future expenses. "It's the future ramification he's worried about."

The judge is seeking $10,000 for anticipated future medical and hospital expenses and $25,000 for pain and suffering, according to court documents, which state that the injuries have caused a permanent disability.

Shore hope that ole judge recluses hisself from presiding over the court case ---- although I don't know, it is Massachusetts, home state of that paragon of "accepting personal responsibility" Teddy Kennedy.....