Man with frog phobia awarded $1.6 million

A man with a deathly terror of frogs was awarded $1.6 million when a new housing project caused run-off to flood his property -- bringing along an amphibious payload. From the Buffalo News:

Water runoff has turned most of Paul Marinaccio’s 40 acres in Clarence into a wetland. How it happened angers him. What came along with all that water terrifies him – frogs. “I’m petrified of the little creatures,” said Marinaccio, 65. If that sounds bizarre or far-fetched, consider one of Marinaccio’s childhood memories. He traces his deep-seated fear of frogs to when he was a child in an Italian vineyard, where his parents worked. He remembers wandering to a nearby property for figs and being chased away by a man holding bullfrogs. Decades later, frogs again have Marinaccio on the run. In the spring and summer months, they show up on his driveway and lawn – keeping him inside his home. Marinaccio sued the Town of Clarence and the developer of a nearby subdivision for diverting runoff onto his land and won a $1.6 million award. “I beat the government,” he said.

There's a lot of background to this story -- you can read the whole thing here.