Cinematic Compensation

A Chinese woman is suing a cinema and a film's distributors for wasting her time by showing 20 minutes of adverts before it started, according to state media.

Chen Xiaomei claims the Polybona International Cinema in the northern city of Xian and film distributors Huayi Brothers Media Corporation should have told her how long the advertisements for the film Aftershock lasted, Xinhua news agency said.

Ms Chen, who is a lawyer, has accused Polybona and Huayi Brothers of wasting her time and violating her freedom of choice.
The case has been accepted by the People's Court in Xian, the capital of Shaanxi province, Xinhua said, citing a statement from the court.
Ms Chen is demanding the companies refund her 35-yuan ticket (£3.30), pay her 35 yuan in compensation and one yuan (10p) for emotional damages and write her an apology, the report said.
She has also advised the cinema to publish the advertisement times on its website, in the lobby or on its customer hotline and asked Huayi Brothers to cut the length of commercials to less than five minutes.

Towed for Security

A driver was forced to pay £150 to get his car back after police confiscated it because he left a window open. Marcus Morris was told that police they had taken his VW Polo because the open window - which he had accidentally left down - meant the vehicle was at risk of theft.

Mr Morris, 25, had parked the car near to Leeds city centre as he went for a job interview but returned an hour-and-a-half later to find it had gone. He contacted West Yorkshire Police believing it had been stolen but was told they had removed it to protect it from thieves.

Mr Morris, said: "I couldn't believe it. It seems outrageous. So what if I had left my window open? If anything had been taken then it'd have been my own fault." Police told him a window had been left open and a CD wallet was in the back of the car. The vehicle had been taken to a storage facility.

When Mr Morris collected his car the next morning he was handed a bill for £150. "I'm not working at the moment and that's a lot of money for me. It's money I don't think I should have had to pay," he said.

West Yorkshire Police said it made no apology for taking action. Chief Insp Elizabeth Belton said: "Officers regularly patrol our communities looking for opportunities to prevent crime, which is exactly what has happened on this occasion. The vehicle was left insecure with valuables on show in an area with significant levels of car crime and we were unable to locate the owner. We make absolutely no apology whatsoever for the officer's actions, which have prevented this vehicle becoming a target for thieves. Had a thief got there first it would have been a very different story. We need people to take responsibility for their own property and take any valuables with them when they park up. We hope Mr Morris's story will serve as a reminder."

The charges made for the recovery and storage of vehicles are set nationally by the Government. Mr Morris confirmed he is taking legal advice in an attempt to recover the cost.

Wahsington's Fines

Librarians in New York’s oldest library have discovered that George Washington, the first president of the United States, has an unpaid fine of $300,000. Washington failed to return two books in 1789, which have been accruing overdue fees. He was supposed to return the books after a month, but failed to do so. “We’re not actively pursuing the fines,” said Mark Bartlett, the head librarian of the library. The former president, who died in December 1799, borrowed two books from what was then the only library in Manhattan – “Law of Nations,” a dissertation on international relations, and a volume of debate transcripts from Britain’s House of Commons.