Request Media Kit

Man Holding Bully Sign Says Judge Ruined His Life

An Ohio man ordered by a judge to spend Sunday wearing a sign reading “I AM A BULLY” at a busy street corner in Cleveland said was greeted by jeers and honking, and said the sentence was...
Man Holding Bully Sign Says Judge Ruined His Life
Written by
  • An Ohio man ordered by a judge to spend Sunday wearing a sign reading “I AM A BULLY” at a busy street corner in Cleveland said was greeted by jeers and honking, and said the sentence was unfair, and that the judge ruined his life.

    “The judge destroyed me,” Aviv said.

    “This isn’t fair at all,” Aviv said.

    Edmond Aviv, 62, was ordered by Municipal Court Judge Gayle William-Byers to display the sign for five hours on a corner in South Euclid, Cleveland, as part of his sentence in a dispute in which a neighbor said Aviv bullied her and her disabled children for the past 15 years. Aviv pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge.

    “I AM A BULLY! I pick on children that are disabled, and I am intolerant of those that are different from myself. My actions do not reflect an appreciation for the diverse South Euclid community that I live in,” the sign said.

    The judge also said that the letters on the sign had to be large enough for the average person to see from a distance of 25 feet.

    Aviv arrived at the corner just before 9 a.m. on Sunday, and dozens of cars drove by and honked. Some people who passed yelled at him, while others took pictures.

    Aviv’s neighbor, Sandra Prugh, who filed the dispute, has two adult adopted children with developmental disabilities, cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Her husband has dementia, and her son is paralyzed.

    Prugh said in a letter to the court that Aviv had called her an ethnic slur while she was holding her adopted black children, spit on her several times, regularly threw dog feces on her son’s car windshield, and once smeared feces on a wheelchair ramp.

    “I am very concerned for the safety of our family,” Prugh wrote in a letter to the court for Aviv’s sentencing. She said she just wants to live in peace.

    The judge also ordered Aviv to serve 15 days in jail, 100 hours of community service, and to attend anger management classes and counseling. Aviv also had to submit an apology letter to Prugh and have it published in a local newspaper.

    “I want to express my sincere apology for acting irrationally towards your house and the safety of your children,” Aviv wrote.

    “I understand my actions could have caused harm but at that time I was not really thinking about it,”Aviv wrote.

    Image via YouTube

    Get the WebProNews newsletter
    delivered to your inbox

    Get the free daily newsletter read by decision makers

    Subscribe
    Advertise with Us

    Ready to get started?

    Get our media kit