Cat Owner Wins $125k Settlement After It Was Accused Of Trespassing

Lex Gabrielle
tabby cat
Unsplash | Erik-Jan Leusink

Having a pet is a huge responsibility. We have to not only take care of them, feed them, nurture them, and love them, but we also have to look after them and make sure they are not getting themselves into any serious trouble.

Sometimes, our pets can roam outside of our home and run wild and free and get themselves into some trouble.

Anna Danieli knows this all too well.

tabby cat
Unsplash | Grace Brauteseth

Danieli, who lives in Washington, has a tabby cat named Miska. Miska seems to be the type of cat that enjoys strolling around her neighborhood and seeing the sights.

However, officials in her neighborhood are not fond of Miska.

Officials apparently fined Miska more than 30 different times.

Fines sign
Unsplash | Tungsten Rising

According to reports, officials in the neighborhood accused the housecat of terrorizing other pets, killing animals, and roaming freely in the area without any guidance. The fines and violations ended up totaling more than $30,000.

Clearly, that's very high to charge a cat.

courtroom lawyer
Unsplash | Jeremy McGilvrey

King County and the City of Bellevue, where both Danieli and Miska live, ended up in a complete and total lawsuit over these outrageous citations. Apparently, Miska was even taken away from Danieli by animal control after multiple complaints.

Danieli’s lawyer, Jon Zimmerman, said that the situation was just "unfair."

tabby cat
Unsplash | Kido Dong

“Miss Danieli didn’t even know this individual, who had been the manager of animal control, this individual in her neighborhood had actually been filling these complaints until later on in the case,” said Zimmerman.

After the entire court process, Danieli was awarded a huge settlement.

money
Unsplash | 金 运

Danieli ended up winning $125,000 in a court settlement from the city and the county. “This was really a historic settlement involving a cat in the state of Washington," Zimmerman shared.

The City of Bellevue issued a statement that they are "improving their policies."

tabby cat
Unsplash | Zeke Tucker

“While this was a unique situation for the City of Bellevue, we are hopeful that our updates to city code – regarding civil offenses involving animals – will help ensure that future scenarios are resolved earlier and more clearly so pet owners and their neighbors can live without disruption,” a spokesperson told Fox13 Seattle.

While it sounds rather strange, suing a cat is not the craziest lawsuit ever filed.

law statue
Unsplash | Tingey Injury Law Firm

There are many people around the world who get outright angry over inconveniences and things they did not expect. And, the way things turn out, you can really file a lawsuit for just about anything it seems.

In 2017, one man sued his date for being on her phone too much.

woman texting on phone
Unsplash | Jae Park

One Austin, Texas man decided his date was totally rude and disrespectful during a movie they were seeing, so he decided to file a lawsuit when she spent far too much time on her phone. He wanted to sue her for the cost of the date and she ended up paying him back for the movie ticket.

Another person sued Subway for "false advertising" their footlong sandwich.

subway sandwich
Unsplash | Ola Mishchenko

When you pay for something, you want what you pay for I assume. One teenager decided to sue the sandwich chain Subway when he found out his "footlong sandwich" was only 11-inches.

One customer even tried to sue Redbull.

redbull
Unsplash | Jesper Brouwers

Redbull is an energy drink that is known to give you a boost of energy to get you through your day. However, one customer felt that they "didn't get enough energy" from their Redbull and sued the company. Red Bull settled and paid $640,000.

And, the worst one of all.

newborn baby
Unsplash | Omar Lopez

A husband from China decided to sue his wife for giving him an "ugly baby" in 2012. He said the cosmetic procedures she has gave him "false hope." He won the case, and his wife had to pay him more than $120,000.